Not as Different as we Seem
by PxJLoverKyoto
Summary: When the Great War depletes Cybertron's energon and almost leaves it a wasteland,a last desperate attempt sets the stage for a whole new War. When the Predacons learn of this seemingly endless energon deposit, will Earth suffer the same fate as Cybertron?
1. Prologue

_**Disclaimers: **__I do not own Beast Wars or Transformers; this awesomeness is owned by Hasbro…unfortunately…I only own my OCs which you will meet along the story._

_**A/N:**This story is set in an AU of my creation, although some of the basic story plots and events are from the original Beast Wars, the rest is all me._

_This is my __**first**__ Beast Wars/TF fanfic; heck, it's my first fic __**ever**__,so please be gentle. And constructive criticism __**is **__welcome, but flamers and trolls shall be thrown into the Insecticon Swarm. Thank you~! X3_

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><p><strong>Prologue - The Great War<strong>

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><p>Many millennia ago, on a planet called Cybertron, a race of sentient robotic beings lived in relative peace and prosperity. That is, until the war started.<p>

As with every war, its beginnings come from the discontentment of the lower caste mechs living lives of slaves and drones, being treated no better than such. As while they toiled and worked endlessly for meager energon rations and below inadequate housing; it was only a matter of time till someone finally said "Enough".

And it should be irony or fate, that this mech be a miner, the lowest of the caste systems. His name was D-16, a designation given to him as a mere convenience for the supervising higher ups to distinguish him from other workers.

One day, a senator came about to inform the miners that new machinery would be employed, thus rendering them obsolete. This was the energon drop that tipped the cube.

Blinded by a deep rage, D-16 threw his mining ax…and off lined the senator in one swift blow.

After having been captured and prosecuted, he was sentenced to be a slave in the Gladiator Pits of Kaon.

Here, he battled his way to the top of the Gladiator ranks and made a name for himself: Megatronus, so named after one of the first Thirteen Primes.

Once his name was known among media circuits of Cybertron's more prosperous sectors, he began speaking of the horrors and injustices of the caste system and the need to create a new Cybertron, one where all mechs were equal and all could have a chance to become more than what they'd been created or programmed to be.

His words were mostly ignored by those who were of a higher caste; even brushed off as nothing more than a malfunctioning bot with ridiculous ideals. But one mech listened, and it filled his spark with something he had never felt. Hope. Determination. A need to make his home the place this 'Megatronous' envisioned it could be.

His name was Orion Pax, a simple dock worker and Archiver that had never truly questioned his place and existence. Until now.

In time, he met with the gladiator and found themselves becoming friends; they even began discussing ways they could make their ideals come to pass.

It was here that their thoughts differentiated drastically; Orion was a soft spoken mech who suggested more diplomatically based solutions. Megatronous, having lived his entire existence fighting for his life, wished for a more direct and forceful approach.

One day, they managed to receive an audience with the High Council of Cybertron, the political center of the planets leaders.

The Council paid little heed to Megatronous' 'self-righteous ramblings', but where instantly impressed with the young Orion's firm determination and open honesty, not to mention his humble personality and lack of guile.

In the end, they offered the young mech a chance to become the next Prime.

Seeing this as a betrayal, Megatronous became bitter and began recruiting mechs; and those that were not with him…were against him.

He declared open war on all of Cybertron.

As time passed and The Great War, as it came to be known later on, waged on; the ideals of freedom and equality that Megatronous had so vehemently preached about became lost; as did the mech.

Gone was Megatronous, and in his place was now Megatron, a tyrannical dictator ruled by his hunger for power and the energon of his enemies. Of his once friend Orion Pax, now called Optimus Prime.

Cybertron was now divided into two factions: Megatron's energon-thirsty Decepticons and Prime's valiant Autobots. Any chance for an equal world became less and less likely every time a ship was shot down, a city laid to ruins, a mech off lined in cold-energon.

But not only did Megatron and his legions lay waste to the planet's once thriving surface; he drained it of its life source, Energon, like a black hole sucking the matter out of any unlucky star or planet that came too close to it.

It seemed hopeless for the young Prime and his mechs.

Was this how it would end; not in victory and a freed Cybertron, but from starvation at the servos of their enemies?

And then, just when they were about to give up, one of their scientists discovered a solution; plans for an Ancient Energon Harvester.

The technology was old, from the time of the Thirteen, but they could adapt it.

They finally had a means to gain the upper hand in the war!

The only problem was that Cybertron was completely barren of any energon to harvest. They would have to find another world with the right mineral compositions and radiation levels to allow the creation and continued support of energon deposits.

It was risky, borderline suicidal, decision, but it was their only option.

A small ship, with a five-mech crew of their most brilliant minds and their finest engineers, was sent out on what was probably a one-way trip.

Their only objective was to find a planet that could host a generous enough energon deposit from which they could draw from until the War was ended.

And find it, they did.

And with it came an end to a seemingly endless reign of death and tyranny.

There is very little information on the planet and its location; the only known fact about it is that its location was inscribed into a Golden Disk which lies within the impenetrable vaults of the newly reconstructed New Iacon Archives Temple, filed as an emergency energon source and _**only**_ to be searched out if another War should come to be.

And there it remains, to this very orn.

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><p><em><strong>AN: **__I know, not much of a prologue, but trust me, the story __**will **__get better~! Please, review and if you find something in which I need to improve or if you have advice on how I can improve, I would happily hear it and thank you for it~ _


	2. Falling Stars

_**Disclaimers: **__I do not own Beast Wars or Transformers, if I did, there'd probably be a yaoi anime made and I'd hire all of the wonderful writers on this site~ XD_

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: Falling Stars<strong>

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><p>Space has always been known as the final frontier. It was vast, no one truly knew how vast. It was silent, not even a scream of pain or a shout of joy could shatter it. And it was mysterious; so many things waiting to be discovered: planets, stars, galaxies…beings. Beings with sentience.<p>

Many humans believe in life in other worlds, that they are not alone. Others refuse to believe in what they cannot see. Life is precious and can exist anywhere and at any time, you just have to know where to look for it.

Space has also been known to be peaceful, the slow orbiting of its planets and asteroids being the only things that could change it, until know.

At the inner part of the Milky Way galaxy, in the planetary system circling the star known as Sol, the peace in its vast area is shattered by a strange rippling, almost like the ripples in a pond when a rock is thrown within. It is not a normal occurrence, as normal as it can be in such an unknown place. But what was more unusual, were the two clearly alien ships that came zooming out of this ripple. And they were shooting one another.

The first of the ship's was shaped like a trident and had an overall dark aura, an almost palatable evil and the second was pear-shaped, with oar-like wing protrusions all around what appeared to be the main body of it. And, whether the beings within noticed or not, they were heading to the third planet closest to Sol, the only planet with sentient life within this star system and all others close to it.

Its inhabitants simply called her Earth.

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><p><em>Inside the Darksyde…<em>

"Megatron, syzztem'zz reading red all over conzzzole!" The distressed and buzzing cry came from the main flight control console, the strange, humanoid looking creature buzzing in obvious fear and distress. "Maximal ship clozzing in _fazzt!_"

A low growl traveled from what appeared to be the captain's chair and the rather huge being that sat there, its eyes narrowing dangerously.

"I _know _that, you simpering fool! What I _need_ to know is if we are at the right coordinates. And if not, can we make another jump, yes?" It wasn't so much a question as a threat if the answer was 'no'.

The being at the controls, and with a flash of sparking wires we see a flash of green and yellow plating, starts buzzing in even greater distress. "Um, uh, well…" he couldn't even form proper sentences.

"What he's trying to say is that we lost our warp-gate generator and our navigation systems the second we left the gate." The answer came from a slightly screechy voiced, red creature that was sitting next to the green one. "We'd been hit before entering the gate and as soon as we exited, the generator finally gave out. We're stuck, Megatron, and we can't pin-point _where_ we _are_!"

The giant at the captain's seat, now known to be named Megatron, snarled in frustration. "NO! Not when we were so close!" He slammed down angrily on the chair's arms, leaving a pair of angry dents in the shape of his fists. "What about our weapons? You better tell me they work…" The threat was left hanging, sure that his subordinates would understand the unsaid 'or else'.

Gulping nervously, the red screechy one answered, "Y-yes, they work, but…" he really didn't want to finish his sentence…

Megatron glared dangerously at him. " 'But' _what?_" His voice a deadly hiss.

Gulping once more and cringing in anticipatory fear for the lashing he knew he would receive. "B-but our e-engines are g-giving out….we'll be sitting turbo-foxes soon…" he managed to stutter out.

His glare intensified. "No, we will _not_. You will land the ship _before_ that happens, yes."

"B-but Megatron, sir, the only planet with the right atmosphere and conditions is too far! By the time we get there, the engines won't be able to slow down our descent, we'll—"

"THEN WE'LL TAKE THE MAXIMALS WITH US!"

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><p><em>Inside the Axalon…<em>

"Ugh, Optimus, our shields our down and our guidance systems are none existent!" A young voice shouted over the sounds of alarms and system warnings resounding all over the ship. "If we take another hit, we're slagged!"

"Oh, man! I _knew _dis was a suicide mission da second we got dat transmission!" whined a slightly nasally, but heavily accented voice. "We're an exploration ship, not a battle cruisah!"

"Everyone calm down, we can still make it through!" Was the calm answer from the ship's captain, Optimus. "And you know we were the only ship in the vicinity of the Predacons' flight path that could also follow their warp signature!"

"Yeah, well, dat don't make it any bettah, you—" But he was cut off by the sudden violent shaking of the ship.

"Optimus, they're changing course! They're heading for that blue and green planet!" The young voice shouted once more once the ship stopped shaking, although the alarms continued and seemed to have multiplied and grown louder. More insistent.

"Optimus, I just ran a scan of the planet; it contains sentient life." The deep, solemn bass voice of a rather large crew member, announced. His presence, though immense, was a soothing one and wasn't at all terrifying like the monstrosity that was Megatron.

"Primus," The captain uttered the oath silently, and then continued in a louder voice "Get closer and ready the weapons! We have to stop them before they reach that planet!"

"_WHAT_? Are ya outta yer processors? Didn't ya hear the kid? 'One more hit'!" was the heated, and demanding, answer "Do ya wanna get us all offlined?"

"I said," he was deadly calm and even "Get closer and ready the weapons. We are _**not **_letting some unknowing alien species become a third party in this. Not when we can do something about it." It was said with a determination that should've ended the argument. Should have.

"Fragging crazy, goody-goody, hero-complexed…" The other muttered, but he stopped arguing.

"All right, Big Bot, plasma cannons charged and ready!" The younger being excitedly replied; he was obviously enjoying this a little too much, regardless of the danger of their current situation.

"Alright, let's bring down some Preds."

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><p>"Megatron, the Maximals have entered firing range." A rasping, growling voice from an intimidating blue and bronze being, stated "We should destroy them now!"<p>

"No, not just yet. Let them come, I want to be close enough to hear their pitiful screams, yesss…" Was the sadistically pleased order, a viciously victorious smirk placed on Megatron's face.

And they didn't have to wait long, as the _Axalon_ came up along side of the _Darksyde_.

"SIDE CANONNS, FIRE!"

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><p>"AAAAGHHH!"<p>

"The stasis hold," The panicked cry cut through the alarms "IT'S FAILING!"

"We're going down." Was the large, green crew member's deep-voiced, yet eerily calm, statement.

"Launch the pods! Get them into safe orbit!" Optimus ordered firmly "I am NOT losing any mechs today!"

As they started falling into the planet's surface, the ship's cargo hold opened and the stasis pods containing the _Axalon_'s crew were launched, their emergency propulsion systems kicking in and keeping them out of harm's way. The same could not be said for the _Axalon_ as it plummeted to the Earth.

But not without shooting one final plasma blast at the _Darksyde_; bringing _**it**_ down as well.

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><p><em>New York City, 9:35 pm…<em>

It was a rare, but beautifully clear winter night in New York City, the smog level low enough that the sky and its treasures could be fully enjoyed without the use of telescopes. And it was certainly being enjoyed by a young woman, who was sitting at the edge of her window sill, in a small brownstone apartment she shared with her friend in the lower East Side.

And it was with single minded fervor that she drew each and every star she could see in her 8"x12" sketch pad, making sure to add the slight color variations and shades that were natural to the stars or that were created when their light passed through the planet's atmosphere. She even took time to trace out the constellations and start sketching out the outlines of the creatures or people that each one represented.

It was still early winter, mid-January to be precise, but the night was unusually warm (well, cold but not enough to freeze your fingers off), thus she could enjoy the night sky without much trouble, only needing a light jacket.

Her name was Ashley Hunter, a small town girl from West Virginia that had been lucky enough, though everyone kept telling her it was because of her gift for art, to be accepted into Manhattan's School of Visual Arts. She'd been given a full scholarship and was now in the final year of her undergraduate studies. And she was loving every minute of it.

But it wasn't all peaches and roses for her. Although she loved art and being able to express herself through her drawings, whether they were portraits of people she knew or saw randomly on the streets, to her silly cartoons and comics, that ranged from traditional American styled newspaper comics to the popular Japanese "manga" style, her social life was pretty much non-existent. Why? Because she was good, _too _good and it rubbed all of her classmates the wrong way.

She sighed sadly as her thoughts went to the whispers of her classmates. She knew they were just jealous, and that she shouldn't let it get to her, but it didn't stop hurting any less.

"I just don't get it…" She muttered softly to herself "So what if the professors like my projects more than theirs, if they paid more attention and actually _did _their work instead of oogling the nude models, they_ might_ just be able to graduate…But, of course, _I'm _the 'teacher's pet'." She snorted in disgust at their shallowness; their need to assign blame to _someone_. Honestly, some people…

"Oy, are ya talking to y'self, _again?_" Her mini-rant was interrupted by the teasing, and heavily Hispanic accented, voice of another young woman. "People are gonna start thinkin' yer _loca, _y'know~" She gave Ahsley a teasing grin.

"Hmph, so what? I'd rather be crazy than the snob and suck up my classmates make me out to be." She shot back, with a dry grin.

The Latina girl sighed in exasperation at her friend's tone and rolled her eyes. "What have I told ya about them _cabrones_? Ignore 'em, their just jealous." She marched right up to Ashley and poked her firmly on the nose. "_You _are talented, not _them_, and _you _shouldn't be giving a damn about what they say, _especially _when it starts making you have second thoughts."

"I'm not having second thoughts; I'm just starting to wonder if I should fail at least one class just so I can seem more human." she said, half-joking, half-serious "I mean, maybe if I can show them that I'm 'normal' too, people wouldn't hate me…" She even air-quoted as she said the word 'normal'.

"Oh, please! Don't ya dare say ya don't like proving those snobby _idiotas _just what a _real_ artist is supposed to be like." She stated with a small annoyed scowl. "And ya _can't_ tell me you don't _love _being a good-no, scratch that-an _incredible _artist."

Ashley's shoulders slumped, fixing her stare to her drawing of the night sky, "Of course I love it, Rosie, I just…" She gave a deep, sad sigh "I just wish a few of them weren't so judgmental, y'know? Just one person, even. I know I sound childish, but it hurts… " Her voice wobbled slightly and she quickly looked away, into the sky, trying to hide her tears.

But Rosie, Rosario Rodríguez, had seen. She immediately went over to her friend and wrapped her arms comfortingly around her. "Oh, Ash_. _Don't cry, it's ok…"

Ash turned to her friend's comforting embrace and let the tears come. It wasn't the first time, so she was beyond being ashamed of this.

She'd met Rosario when she'd first come to New York, by answering an ad in the newspaper for a roommate. At first, Ashley was leery, like any other person meeting a stranger would be, especially if you might end up sharing an apartment with said stranger.

But her fear slowly melted away as she started talking to Rosie, she'd _insisted _on being called Rosie or Rose, she _hates _her normal name with a vengeance, and saw they had many things in common. They liked the same music, they both loved to cook (though Rosie was the better cook) and they both had problems with their parents. They'd both been alone before they met one another.

Even though she never had any trouble with her parents and had had a very happy childhood, Ashley's parents had wanted her to stay and learn the family business, which was horse training, and had told her, many times, that under no terms did they support her "easy-way" choice.

They'd never supported her endless hours just sitting on their porch drawing the land surrounding the ranch, the horses she loved to ride, even the neighboring buildings. They just didn't understand; didn't see her gift for art or the love she had for it. So, it was safe to say, her goodbye had been nearly final and very painful; she hadn't seen or spoken to her parents since she'd left some 3 years ago.

Rosie's parents, though, were another case; they didn't want her. Period. They'd only kept her because of the family plan benefits they were getting. She was just a means to an end. An annoyance that they would get rid of the second they could. As such, no sooner had she turned eighteen, they kicked her out. It was only a few weeks after that had happened that Ash had met Rose.

Few days later, they were moving their stuff into the small, two bedroom apartment and picking out colors for the rooms over Chinese take-out.

Ashley slowly calmed down and the tears finally stopped. Pulling herself gently from her friend's embrace, she gave her grateful smile. "Thanks, Rosie. You always listen to me when I need to let it out."

"Of course I do. " Rosie smiled fondly, then grinned teasingly at her "I _am _the oldest, it's my job"

Ash sniggered, her sadness cleared like the clouds in the night sky. "Oh, _please_~ By, like, a few days~!" Then she grinned deviously. "Besides, I'm still taller than you~"

That got a response, a low mock-growl. "Why you-!" And without further warning, she pounced on Ash and proceeded to tickle the life out of her. "What've I told ya about my _height_~?"

Ash shrieked in laughter at the sudden onslaught and tried to vainly bat and push her friend away. "Stop! Hahaha, s-stop! M-mercy~! P-pleeeaaasee~! Hahahaha!"

Rose smirked evilly. "Not till ya apologize~" She did slow down her "attack" a little, though.

"Alright! Alright~! Hahaha, I-I'm so-sorry~! Hahaha, I'm sorree-hehehe~!

As sudden as she'd started, Rose immediately backed off, smirk still in place. "See~? That wasn't so hard, _verdad_~?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever~" Sticking her tongue out, Ash sat back on the sill. Now that she was out of her funk, she could continue drawing.

But as soon as she looked back at the sky, she couldn't help but gasp in delight. "Rosie, look! Shooting stars!"

Rosie quickly made her way over to the window and saw the two, bright streams of light sailing through the horizon, she whispered in awe. "_Dios mio, que bonito…_"

"Let's make a wish!" Ash declared, sounding very much like a little girl.

Rose looked at her incredulously. "A wish? What are we, eight?" She asked, grinning lopsidedly.

"You're _never _too old to wish on a star!" She declared proudly. "Come on, on the count of three."

"Oh, alright."

"Ok! 1…2…3!"

And both girls closed their eyes and made a wish. Rosie was only playing along to humor her friend; she already had everything she could want: a job, a home and a family. What more could she want?

"So, what did ya wish for?"

"If I told you, the wish wouldn't come true~" Ash replied cheekily, giggling when her friend merely stuck her tongue out at her.

When she looked out the window again, the stars were gone. She would've happily continued her drawing, but when she yawned long and loud, she realized it was probably late and she did have class tomorrow. Oh well, the drawing could wait.

With one last look at the stars, she closed the window, pulled the curtains closed and went straight to bed.

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><p><strong>AN: **_Here's a Spanish-English translation for you guys, just in case. X3 Like before, please review and help a fellow fan-girl out~_

_Loca –_ Crazy

_Cabrones – _Assholes

_Idiotas –_ Idiots

_Verdad? – _Right?

_Dios mío, que bonito – _My God, how pretty


	3. Meetings

_**Disclaimer: **Transformers and Beast Wars are **not **mine in any way, shape and/or form; I'm just playing with its characters~ X3_

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><p><strong>Chapter 2: Meetings<strong>

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><p><em>Axalon crash site, Silver Lake Preserve, 11:54 pm…<em>

"How are the repairs coming along, Rattrap?" The ever patient voice of Optimus Primal asked.

He was now sporting a silver back gorilla as his beast mode; it wasn't exactly the most subtle disguise, but it was the nearest animal that the ship's scanners picked up that was compatible with his systems.

" 'Comin'? They ain't even started!" Was the annoyed reply of Rattrap, newly named because of the gray rat he'd taken his beast mode from.

"The entire ship's a _scrap pile_! Wires're sparkin' left an' right, the navigation system's toast, an entire engine's _gone_ and we ain't got spare parts worth slag! I am _happy _to say that thanks to _you_, Fearless Leader, we are now _stuck _on this primitive mudball!" He kicked angrily at a fallen piece of scrap metal, glaring at the ship. Or, well, what was left of it.

"I'm afraid that Rattrap's right, Optimus." The calm deep voice of Rhinox, now a brown rhinoceros, intervened before Rattrap said something else that would get him into deeper slag. "We were simply not equipped to handle space battles, and we don't have the materials to replace anything at the moment, other than a few fried circuit boards…" He trailed of as he pulled out one of said fried circuit boards.

Optimus let out heavy sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly "Well, that's just Prime…" Rubbing tiredly at his optics, he tried to stay positive. "Isn't there something we could use from the locals? From what we've seen from the satellite transmissions we've intercepted, they've got a decent level of technology…"

" 'Decent'? HA!" There was derisive scoff. "Please. Some o' da tech dey got here's so primitive; a _sparklin'_ would get bored wit it…"

"But can you _use _it?" He asked again, trying to keep his annoyance out of his voice. "Your file did say you're a master of improvisation, so I believe that _this _is as good a time as any to prove that." Optimus raised an optic ridge, challenging the rat to tell him otherwise.

Smacking his forehead then running his hand slowly down his face, Rattrap uttered a sigh of annoyance and frustration. He should've _known _that file would get him in trouble…"Yeah, I can use da humans' tech, but it's gonna take a long, _long _while."

Sighing heavily, rubbing his optics once more. "How long?" He was dreading the answer already.

"About two local stellar cycles." Rhinox answered distractedly while studying a circuit board that was burnt beyond repair.

"…Wonderful." Sarcastic? Maybe, but he couldn't be blamed right now. "I guess we're going to have to learn more about this new planet, since we'll be calling it home for a while…"

"Oh, no! _You _can call it 'home', _I'm _gonna call it wat it is: 'mudball'." No way was he calling some backwater, primitive, dirt-covered planet _home_!

"Shut up, Rattrap." Was the unanimous reply from the two mechs.

Suddenly, Optimus blinked. Wait. Two? Where was…

"Rattrap, where's Cheetor?" Optimus just now realized that the young mech was missing and had probably been so for a while now.

"Whaddo I look like, his sparklin' sittah?" Was the annoyed answer, as the rat stuck his head into an opening, trying to get at a piece of shrapnel that was stuck in what was left of a capacitor unit.

"…I think he said somethin' 'bout explorin' the forest or somethin'…" He finally, resignedly, grumbled when he felt Optimus continue to burn holes on the back of his helm.

"What? You let him go _alone _into some unknown forest? Without letting anyone else know?" Yes, he was growling by now. "What if the humans see him? Don't you think they'll start getting suspicious if they see a wild animal just wandering around? And did you forget that there are still _Predacons _out there?"

Rattrap just glared; then enunciated slowly. "Like I said. I. _Ain't. _His. Sparklin' sittah. Dat's _your _job." He said with a small smirk. That'll teach him for not listening to him and gettin' 'em stuck on this mudball.

"Rattrap…" Optimus growled, but stopped and let out one last frustrated snarl, then immediately composed himself. Cheetor was missing, now was _not _the time for this. "We'll continue this…discussion, later. Until then, stay with the ship. Rhinox, you and I will go look for Cheetor."

And with that, he turned around stiffly, and without another word, transformed into beast mode and headed into the forest. Rhinox gave one last impassive stare at Rattrap, sighed, shook his head and headed after Optimus, transforming into beast mode as well.

"Hmph, good riddance." muttered Rattrap. Now he could work in peace without the big ape breathin' down his neck struts.

* * *

><p><em>Outside NYC city limits…<em>

Cheetor was in awe at the sight before him. The city, and yes, it may have been an alien planet, but he recognized a city when he saw one; was absolutely amazing!

There were large glass and metal towers as far as his optics could see. And the lights! It reminded him so much of New Iacon and the Crystal City Spires. It made him feel a little homesick. But only a little. Right now, his excitement and eagerness at exploring this new planet was overriding any and all other feelings and thought processes.

Oh, what he would give to be able to run and jump from rooftop to rooftop; to experience all the new sights, sounds and smells, maybe even tastes! The thought made his grin widen. He wanted to go down there _so, so much…_

But he couldn't. And it wasn't just cuz he was a giant, alien robot that the locals would likely run away from, because that was the reason he'd picked out a beast mode; so he could hide what he was from curious optics…or whatever it was that humans had for visual components.

No, it was _because _of his beast mode. He knew his beast mode, a cheetah, was a hunter, a predator, something these humans would fear. He'd only picked it cuz there was a specimen nearby that the _Axalon_ had scanned and he'd downloaded some info about it and saw that cheetahs were the fastest creatures on this world. Well, at least on land, that is.

Then a thought struck him. He _was _fast…fast enough that maybe the humans wouldn't be able to catch him. Heck, they probably wouldn't even be able to _see _him! The idea alone brought an ecstatic smile to his furry muzzle. Maybe he could go and come back before Optimus and the others realized he was gone…

And just as he took his first step towards the city, he heard his designation being called out by the very clear, very worried, voice of his commander.

"Cheetor! Where are you?"

'_Aw, slag!'_

The young mech sighed in resignation, with one last longing look at the city, he called back.

"I'm over here, Big Bot!"

"Cheetor!" There was a very palpable relief in his voice as he approached the young cat. "What are you doing out here? You could've been seen! Not to mention the Predacons are still out there and they could've ambushed you!" He scolded, albeit gently.

Cheetor's hunches slumped. "I know…I'm sorry, I was just curious about the area…and then I found the city…" He looked back at the bright lights that were now slightly obscured by the thick trees. "I'm sorry; I guess I should've let you guys know first..."

Optimus sighed softly. "It's not just that, Cheetor. We're on an unknown planet, _severely _outnumbered by a race that we have no information about, nor do we know how they might react to us. They could probably mistake you for a threat and try to either capture you or kill you." He knew he was being blunt, but it was probably the only way to get the severity of their situation through to the youngling. "I know you're curious about this place, and so am I, but we have to be more careful."

"Yes, Optimus, I know." He felt like a sparkling being scolded, he hated the feeling but knew it was just Optimus' job to make sure they all remained in one piece. "Do…do you think we'll be able to explore some of this place later?" He grinned tentatively.

Optimus smiled and chuckled softly, placing a large, yet, comforting hand on the young mech's head. "Don't worry, Cheetor, according to Rattrap, we'll be stuck here for a _long _while. We'll have plenty of time for exploring later…"

Then he was cut off by the sounds of some sort of motorized vehicle heading in their direction.

No, not one. Several.

"Optimus!" Rhinox whispered harshly in alarm. "It's the humans! There're several of them, I count twenty, and more may be coming!"

"Slag it!" He could now see the humans' lights shining through the edge of the trees. "We have to move, now!" But as soon as he turned, he saw there were more lights behind them. They were surrounded. No!

"Slag!"

"What do we do, Big Bot?" Cheetor whispered in near panic, his fur starting to rise as his beast mode began reacting to his agitation. "Do we make a run for it?"

"No! They might have weapons." Optimus looked quickly around them; the humans were getting closer. "We may have to go with them, at least until we find some way to escape without injuring them or ourselves. Just act 'normal', and don't give them any trouble."

Cheetor and Rhinox exchange one last wary glance before nodding at Optimus.

This was going to be a long night.

* * *

><p><em>The next day, 7:15 am…<em>

It was a clear winter morning in New York, the cars were covered in fine sheets of ice, the snow scattered around the sidewalks in varying sized mounds and the people making their way quickly to their schools and work places looked like multicolored Michelin Men with their numerous layers of winter clothes. It was the perfect day to remain in doors and sit by the fireplace, if you had one, and drink a mug of hot chocolate or coffee.

Unfortunately, Ashley had four classes today that she just could _not _miss. But that didn't stop her from whining about it to her friend.

"It's just not fair, Rosie! It's way too cold out to walk, let alone remember stuff for an exam and _two _quizzes!" Her arms were crossed and she was pouting sulkily, grumbling. "If it wasn't cuz Prof. Spitz said the test's worth 50% of the grade, I'd be in _bed _right now…"

"_Ay nena,_ you whine too much! I mean, don't those classrooms have heaters?" She'd been through this with Ash before, and as always, she would whine and threaten about 'staying next time'. Of course, there've been _several _'next times' since her first winter in the city.

"They broke down yesterday." She stated glumly. "And the entire place is like a morgue! I swear, I thought I saw my _breath_!"

"Oh, don't be such a drama queen! I have a _night _shift at the diner today, remember? So don't go whinin' about _cold_ without walkin' seven blocks, at _night,_ first!"

Ash just glared balefully. "Yes, I _know _that! But I still wish it weren't so damn cold." She continued sulking, as if Rose hadn't said anything at all.

Rosie just gave her a disbelieving stare and asked dryly. "Y've lived in New York for 3 _years _and you _still _haven't gotten used to the weather? I mean, didn' it snow where you lived?"

"Of course it snowed! I just…I mean…Oh, never mind." She waved her hand dismissively. "Is the paper here yet?"

Rose raised an eyebrow and looked up to the ceiling. "_Dios, dame paciencia…" _She continued muttering as she made her way over to the door, opened it and picked up the newspaper.

Then, she unceremoniously dropped it in front of Ash. "Here. And don't take too long, Will's gonna be here to pick you up in 30 minutes." And with that, she headed to her bedroom to get ready for the day's chores.

Willow "Will" Morrison was a young veterinary student that had transferred from Raleigh, North Carolina to New York City to finish her last two years of her doctorate degree. They'd met her after a year of living together.

Ash was the first to meet her when her Anatomy of the Animal Kingdom professor had taken her class to the Museum of Natural History, where Will's own Advanced Biology class was "field-tripping". They'd met at the African cats exhibit, were they got to talking when Will commented on Ash's sketchbook and drawings, things just clicked after that.

After both their classes were over, they decided to continue their conversation at the diner Rosie worked at, leading to Will meeting the fiery Latina and the both of them 'clicking' as well. It had been a very interesting conversation, especially when Willow told them her heritage.

Apparently, Will was part Cherokee, on her mother's side, thus explaining her long, ebony hair and light copper skin.

The girls became even more entranced by her story when she explained that when she was a baby, her parents had taken her to be introduced to her grandparents and consequentially the small tribe they were a part of; and that was when the tribe's shaman blessed her with an owl as her 'spirit guardian', that despite being an omen of death in many tribes, it was considered a guardian of wisdom in theirs.

And Willow was a very wise woman indeed, despite her young age of 26.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Ash mumbled and took a sip of her coffee, unfolding the paper.

She wished she'd waited to take that sip, though, when she almost choked on it as she read the headline. "Oh my gosh! Rosie, you gotta come see this!"

The muffled 'THUD' of an object falling, a yelp of pain and a series of curse words in Spanish were her answer.

"_Maldita sea la madre-! What_, Ashley?" She stomped her way over, although it was hard for her to be intimidating with the very noticeable limp to her stomp; and was now glaring death daggers of doom at her. "If this is one of those silly tabloid stories…."

Ash ignored the threat as she simply pointed at the page with an excited, almost childlike smile on her face. This made Rosie a little wary, but she looked at the newspaper. There in big, bold letters was:

"**WILD ANIMALS FOUND WANDERING NEAR OUTSKIRTS OF SILVER LAKE!"**

"Wild animals? What, like, bears or mountain lions or somethin'?" She didn't know what all the fuss was about. Of course there were 'wild animals' at the Silver Lake Preserve. Hence, a _preserve_, duh.

"Try more like a gorilla, a rhino and a cheetah!" The excitement in her voice grew until she practically squealed the last part with a large bright smile on her face and practically squirming in her seat.

"What?" Ok, _that_ got her attention. She immediately read a few sentences and, lo and behold, it _did _say 'a gorilla, a rhinoceros and a cheetah'.

"_Mal rayo parta…_But…_how _did they _get _there? You don't exactly see those wanderin' New York; outside of a zoo or museum, that is."

Ash just shrugged. "No clue. It says here that the animals were pretty docile, so they think that maybe some rich mogul bought them as pets and when they got too big, he let them loose."

" 'Let them loose'? They can't seriously think that…" She said incredulously, an eyebrow arched in disbelief.

"Like I said, they don't know yet. But can you imagine it? Those poor animals! To be all alone in a forest without shelter! And in this weather!" There was a hint of sadness and worry in her voice. "Especially that poor cheetah! They're not built for this kind of weather, y'know! They have really thin coats of fur; I hope he's all right…"

" 'He'? Ay, please, don't start, Ash. I know you love cats, but do notgo thinkin' that this is some unfortunate house cat. I doubt it would think twice about eating you."

"But…but didn't you read the paper? It said they're docile! And I _know _he's not a house cat, and, like you said, I love cats! I can't bear to watch them suffer! And an actual cheetah! In New York City!" She veritably squealed in childish delight. "It's almost too good to be true~!"

Rosie simply rolled her eyes at her friend's childlike behavior. "_Sí, sí, _I know"

In fact, had their land lord allowed pets in the apartment, Ashley would've probably brought home every single stray cat she found.

"But I'm sure the animal rescue people are taking care of 'em." A slight note of nervousness made itself known when she asked. "Um, where _are _they taking them? It's not like they can go to the local animal shelter…"

"Oh, don't be ridiculous, _of course_ they're not taking them to the shelter!" She stated in a 'Well, duh!' tone of voice.

Turning to the newspaper, she continued reading and made a sound of satisfaction "Ah, here it is! They're taking them to the Bronx zoo. At least, until they can rehabilitate them so they can be sent back to the wild. But with all the hunters out there these days, I'm not sure that's such a good idea…"

"Don't. Start. You worry about school and other stuff _enough _as is. You do _not _need somethin' else to worry 'bout. Besides, it's not your problem. It's the zoo's." Rosie sounded matter-of-fact and final.

"Now, are you ready yet? Will's gonna—" She was interrupted by the ring of their doorbell "Speak of the devil, she's already here." She looked at Ash critically "Well?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going, I'm going!" Finishing her coffee, she quickly grabbed her bag and headed for the door.

"Hey, Will!" Ash smiled brightly at her friend as soon as the door was open.

"Good morning, Ashley." Will replied softly with a small, shy smile, looking behind her at Rosie. "Good morning, Rosario."

Rose's eye twitched slightly, and she quickly pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a deep and exasperated sigh. "Will…what have I told you about my name?" Sometimes their friend was just a little _too _polite.

"Yeah, we've been friends for two years! We're _waaay_ past full first name basis~"Ash teased her lightly, trying to hide her giggling behind her hand. Rosie _really _hatesher name!

"Oh! I'm sorry, Rosa-er, I mean-Rose!" Willow said contritely, blushing in embarrassment. "You know how I am with people, and you know my momma raised me to be respectful to others."

Rosie sighed in resignation. She never could stay mad at Will. Ashley, yes, but never Will "It's fine, just…I don't like that name and I wouldn't feel insulted if you called me Rosie or Rose, ok?" Giving her a wry smile, she continued in a fond tone. "You're my _mejor amiga, _Will, _mi hermana_. Both you and Ash, you're family, ok? So don't worry."

"Yeah, we're sisters! And sisters don't call each other by their full names…unless their pissed off, that is." Ash threw a teasing grin in Rosie's direction.

"Ashley." A warning.

"See?" Was the bright reply, completely ignoring said warning.

"_Pendeja."_

"I love you, too, Rosie-posy~!"

Rosie merely continued to glare and then flipped Ash the bird, a grin twitching at the corner of her lips.

Will couldn't help but laugh softly at her friends' exchange; they really _did_ act like sisters. "Ok…that's enough you two. Rosie, I'll try to loosen up a bit more." Giving the small Latina a sheepish smile, she turned to leave and lightly push Ash out.

"Now, come on, Ash, or we're going to be late."

"Alright, alright, stop pushing!"

Both girls waved goodbye to Rosie, before closing the door and heading down the three flights of stairs to the small lobby.

There they went out through the side door that led to the inter-connected parking lot in the building next door. Getting into Will's mint green Toyota Prius (she was such a green freak), the girls buckled up and Will started driving them up the streets of New York.

"So, Will, did you read the newspaper today?" Deciding to make some conversation, Ash wanted to share her excitement with someone who _would _appreciate it.

"Yeah, I did. I can't believe they found three African animals just wandering around outside city limits!" She smiled in subtle excitement. Like Ash, she loved animals and this news was very exciting.

"Next they'll be finding alligators in the sewers…" She grinned playfully at Ash.

She immediately burst out giggling "Y'know...it _has _been proven that people flush down their pet alligators they bring from Florida..."

"Oh, you~!" Will chuckled softly. "They're being taken to the Bronx Zoo, right?"

"Yep! Hey, you wanna go see them after school?" There was a small begging whine to her words.

"Please? And since Rosie's got the night shift today, we can all go together!"

"Oh, I don't know, Ashley…I still have that thesis essay I need to finish for my Animal Behavior's class…" She answered hesitantly. "I mean, it's my last year, thank the spirits, and then I'll be heading to my practice internship, so I really can't afford to dilly-dally…"

"Oh, right. I forgot that." Ash deflated slightly, then perked up again almost immediately "Wait a minute, I know! How about you write your paper _on_ the animals they discovered? I mean, they probably _were_ owned by a rich guy since they were babies and stuff; that had to do _something _to their natural behavior, right?" She smiled winningly, knowing her friend probably wouldn't resist the opportunity.

"Well, yeah…" She conceded thoughtfully, adding more surely. "Yeah, that could be…and rich people smuggling and training wild animals _is _a pretty common thing now a days. And I don't think anyone's made a study on the effects these conditions might have on those kinds of animals." She smiled brightly "Oh Ashley, you're brilliant!"

"Oh, I know." Ash stated, grinning smugly. "Sooo…how does three o' clock sound?"

* * *

><p><em>Silver Lake, Ranger station, 12:32 pm…<em>

It had been pretty easy to fool the humans into thinking they were simple animals, unusually docile, but regular animals none the less. Although they got slightly nervous when the humans started wondering amongst themselves just _how _three African natives had managed to make their way into Silver Lake Preserve.

Apparently, their beast modes weren't normal for this area. But the three mechs let out a sigh of relief when the humans decided that another human must've probably brought them here; something about 'getting rid of evidence of smuggling'.

After that, there was a long and tense conversation about _what _to do with them.

The answer came the next day when one of the men offered to call a friend of his in the Bronx Zoo and see if they could accommodate three extra 'guests'. The animals were obviously docile, so sending them directly back to the wild was out of the question.

The Wildlife Conservation people at the zoo could probably help re-condition the animals for life in the wild; so it was with a relieved sigh and big smile that the man gave the others the 'ok' and had the trucks head towards the city.

Taking the time alone that the ride provided them; Optimus decided to explain to the other two what they're next move should be.

"Alright men, it appears that we're being taken to some kind of animal reservoir for the time being. All we can do at the moment is humor the humans and play along. I know it won't be easy, but it's our only option to keep our identities hidden."

"Yeah, but what if they try to have us scanned? They're gonna notice something's off…right?" Cheetor asked worriedly.

"Don't worry yourself over that, Cheetor," Rhinox replied, remaining as calm as ever "So long as we are in our beast modes, our cybertronian workings will remain hidden from the humans' primitive scanning equipment. It has programs that will feed the machines false data and make it seem like we're regular animals."

"And we won't be around for long," Added Optimus reassuringly. "Just until we figure out a way to escape without anyone getting injured or…Rattrap comes looking for us." But the last part wasn't exactly said with much confidence.

"We're on our own, aren't we?" Cheetor sighed in a knowing tone of voice, lying on his belly, his head on his front paws and his ears drooped.

Neither Optimus nor Rhinox could find the words to deny that. Instead, Optimus tried comforting the young mech. "Don't worry Cheetor. These humans don't seem to want to hurt us; in fact I think they want to help us…in their own way. We'll be out before you know it. Besides," He smiled encouragingly. "I thought you _wanted _a chance to explore the city and it looks like we're heading there. We might even learn more about these people and find some way to let them know what we are and befriend them, perhaps even warn them about the Predacons."

The young feline sighed sullenly. "Yeah, I guess…I just thought I'd be doing the exploring from _outside _a cage…" He grinned weakly.

"It'll be alright, Cheetor. I promise."

* * *

><p><em>Bronx Zoo, 3:45 pm…<em>

When they arrived at the zoo, it was nothing like what the mechs had thought it would be. There weren't any _actual _cages, just high walls to separate the humans from the animals. The areas they were staying in were more like small habitats that looked like they'd been plucked directly from the real thing.

The newly formed cheetah enclosure even had enough space to run, even if it was in wide circles, but at least it wasn't cramped.

Cheetor sighed in relief. _'Hmm, maybe it won't be __**so **__bad…'_

And it wasn't, really. Sure, he had to take the many humans' gawking, mostly sparklings and younglings, pointing at him and shouting at their creators to 'look at the big, spotted kitty'.

Of course, the young mech didn't mind this, oh, no. Not. At. All. It was actually quite an ego boost, especially when he found out he was the only cheetah in all the local zoos. Apparently, the _Axalon_ had scanned the specimen from another zoo when they were passing over the giant land mass they were currently in.

He couldn't help but show off a little for the kids; running at speeds that were fast enough to be considered 'normal' for his species, but not enough to seem out of the ordinary; 'stalking' around his area, as though looking for prey that wasn't there, even letting out a few roars and yowls, sniggering silently to himself in mirth when the kids, and even a few adults, would scream or jump at said displays, but always applauding and cheering afterwards.

Oh yeah, it wasn't bad at _all._

He was just about go lie down and rest near one of the sunlamps they had placed all over his current 'home' (and thank Primus for that, it was fragging _freezing _on this planet!), when he heard it.

Heard _her._

"Oh my gosh, you guys, look! There he is! Isn't he amazing?"

It was absolutely, the most _beautiful_ voice he had ever heard. In his opinion, anyways.

"Ay, _nena, _would ya calm down? You're embarrassing us!" The second female voice sounded annoyed, and had a heavy accent, slightly similar to the one Rattrap had picked up.

"Oh, leave her alone, Rose, she's just having fun." A third female voice joined the others, this one softer, but still not as beautiful as the first.

Cheetor couldn't help himself. He _had _to look. Slowly, without looking too obvious, he turned around…and he felt his spark do a weird flip-flop in his chest. Oh Primus…

She was _beautiful._ He didn't know how he knew the femme he was looking at was the one he'd heard, he just _did._

In all his existence, he'd never seen a femme as bright and lovely as the one standing not 10 feet from him, smiling so widely he wondered how her face didn't split. But he realized he couldn't see her without anything else on her face _but_ a smile. Her face was a lovely heart shape with a few strands of soft-looking, tawny gold-brown hair framing it, hanging over a piece of cloth on her head, and he absently noticed that it had patterns similar to his fur.

She was pale, but not overly so and, as he let his optics adjust zoom in on her, he noticed there was the lightest dusting of, what looked like, light-brown spots over her nose-ridge.

But it was her eyes…Primus, he'd never seen a color like that. It was a light green with a slight halo of gold at the edges, like sunlight streaming through leaves. Oh yes, she was beautiful.

And then, their eyes locked_._

Cheetor couldn't help but freeze up. And promptly started to panic.

'_Oh no! She saw me! She's gonna find out! __**She's gonna find out**__!'_

Then, for a very brief moment, he saw her eyes widen, then almost _glow _in a happiness and wonder he'd never seen in another's optics.

Forcing himself to blink, he quickly looked away, hoping the girl wouldn't think much of what just happened (and at the same time, secretly hoping she _did_) and continued, albeit more quickly, to his original destination. He lay down and prayed to Primus that she wouldn't say anything, or Optimus was going to have his hide. He quickly closed his eyes and pretended to fall asleep.

But there was no way he would be sleeping anytime soon.

Not when all he saw behind his shuttered optics were a pair of shining green-gold eyes sparkling in joy at him.

Nope, no sleep tonight, or tomorrow night if his over-active processors had any say in it.

* * *

><p><em>Outside the cheetah enclosure…<em>

"Oh my gosh! Did you guys see that?" Ash asked her friends, puzzled and delighted at the same time. Did that cheetah just…?

"Hmm? See what, Ash?" Rosie asked, raising an eyebrow and looking up from the small, obviously freshly printed, plaque that had some web-page grade info on cheetahs. Probably from Wikipedia…

"He lookedat me, the cheetah, he…" She trailed off hesitantly, starting to wonder if she'd imagined it…

"Of course it looked at you. With all those _gritos de loca…" _She answered with a teasing smirk.

"I did not _scream,_ I squealed; there's a difference." She stuck her tongue out playfully. "And I meant that he looked at me, like, really _looked. _Like…like…"

'_Like he was conscious…__**sentient**_**. **_But…it's not possible…"_

"Like what, Ashley?" Will asked curiously and slightly worried. She'd just returned from looking at the Zoo map, trying to figure out where they would place the new gorilla, since she doubted they'd place him with the others. "What happened?"

"Um…never mind, it's probably my imagination. That test really did a number on my brain, heh heh heh…" She chuckled hesitantly, scratching her head sheepishly. No, there was no way…and besides, her friends would probably worry about her sanity if she said things like that.

"Well, okay…so, should we go check on the other two?" Something was amiss, Willow was sure, but she decided to let it go for now. Ashley would tell them when she was ready.

"Um, yeah, let's do that. Come on." She grabbed her two friends' arms and started leading them away, but kept stealing small glances back at the cheetah's enclosure. There was something about him; she just couldn't put her finger on it…

Oh well, there was always tomorrow.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **_Spanish-English glossary

_Ay, nena – _Oh, girl

_Dios, dame paciencia – _God, give me patience

_Maldita sea la madre-! _(Puertorrican saying) – Damn the mother of-!

_Mal rayo palta _(Puertorrican saying) – Well, I'll be (rough translation ^_^;)

_Mejor amiga – _Best friend

_Mi hermana – _My sister

_Pendeja _– Stupid or idiot (rough translation)

_Gritos de loca – _Crazy girl screams


	4. Unlikely Friendship

_**Disclaimer: **Transformers/Beast Wars are not mine, they belong to Hasbro. Not me; Hasbro. Got it memorized~? _

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3: Unlikely Friendship<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Bronx Zoo, three weeks later, early-February…<em>

And Ashley did go the next day. Then the _next_ day. And the day after _that_. And just about every other day for the next three weeks.

She just couldn't put her finger on it; there was just…something about that cheetah.

Something…_special._

And as she sat down in what had become her 'usual spot', she thought back to the second day she'd come back and she'd realized this…

_**-Flashback-**_

At first, when she came back, nothing was really out of place. The feline was stalking around his enclosure (though she kept thinking about it as a cage and it made her angry for the poor feline. It'd probably been in a cage for most, if not all, of his life!), looking curiously up at the people gawking at him.

She suddenly felt so sad for the poor creature; he probably didn't know what was going on. And also, a pang of…_something_ when she saw the crowd of people staring at him like some kind of anim— Oh, right.

But, that didn't stop her mind from making that _feeling_, whatever_ it_ was, known…

'_Back off, he's __**mine**__!'_

She started slightly, her eyes widening in surprise when she realized what she'd just thought. She shook her head immediately, trying to dispel the sudden, and confusingly, possessive feeling.

'_What is __**wrong**__ with me? That cheetah belongs to __**no one**__, as soon as he and the others've been 'rehabilitated'; they'll send them back to the wild…'_

She felt horrible again, but this time for a more selfish reason. She didn't **want **the cheetah to go.

Frowning in consternation of all the confusing thoughts and feelings, she shook her head again and concentrated once more on the cheetah. He sure _looked_ normal, but…

'_I just __**know **__that he __**looked **__at me yesterday! He even looked slightly...surprised? But…Why? How could that even be __**possible**__? He's just an animal…right?'_

Feeling her confusion grow more, she unhooked her backpack, and quickly pulled out the small sketch she'd made of the cheetah yesterday. It wasn't completely perfect, but she didn't really care about that now. All she cared about was the look she'd drawn onto the cheetah's face. The one he'd _given_ her.

The feline was looking slightly over his shoulder; almost as if he didn't want to be noticed or be caught looking.

His eyes had been slightly widened and had almost…_glowed _with _something_, something intelligent, much more so if he were just a simple animal. His maw had been slightly opened, not like he was panting or about to roar…but as though in _awe_, like someone who'd seen something they'd never seen, or ever thought they'd see, before.

And when they'd locked eyes…she'd felt almost a…thrill, go down her spine. Not one of fear, no…just something _different_.

Yeah, definitely different.

And she wouldn't stop coming back until she found out what that 'something different' was.

Deciding that she wasn't getting any answers just standing around and gawking like all the other people, and that she needed a better look at the cheetah, she headed down the nearby stairs to the 'Face-to-Face' glass wall that gave a much more 'closer' look at the feline.

Although, 'close' was an understatement; there was only, like, two, maybe three feet of reinforced glass between her and the African savannah native.

And now that she was so much closer, she realized something _else_ had been an understatement. This cat wasn't just _amazing_; he was _magnificent._ She felt her eyes widen as she stared in awe at the lithe and beautifully _deadly _creature just a few feet from her.

His coat was brilliant, obviously well groomed (whether by the zookeepers or the cheetah himself, she wasn't sure), every spot stood out tastefully from the bright marigold-yellow fur.

The muscles under his skin were well-defined and showed a power that she could almost _feel; _one that just wanted to burst free, either in a simple run or while hunting prey. And those _eyes_, she'd never seen eyes as green as those. She didn't even think cheetahs could _have _green eyes; she'd always seen them either amber or dark brown when she watched them on the TV.

But there was something else. Under all those amazing details, there was something…almost shy…uncertain_…_about his movements. Like…he was _afraid _that he might misstep and reveal some big secret.

It was those small, unusual details that made this cheetah stand out to her; that made her want to know _more._

Taking a deep breath and gathering her courage, and bravado, she stepped right up to the glass window and knocked on it, hard, trying to get the cheetah's attention.

'_Thank God there's no one down here, or they'd think I'd gone __**insane**__! Heck, __**I **__think I've gone insane…'_

* * *

><p>He couldn't believe it. He just could <strong>not<strong> _believe it. _She was back. She was _actually __**back!**_

He noticed her long before she got close enough to see him; he'd caught sight of her dark gold hair weaving through the crowd through the corner of his optic. It was _her._

'_Oh Primus, oh Primus, oh __**Primus! **__She knows! She knows! I really did it now; Optimus is __**so **__going to have my hide! What do I do? What do I __**do**__? I know! I'll ignore her! That's it! I'll act like a regular cheetah and she'll probably just brush it off and forget about yesterday…maybe.'_

All throughout his panicked thoughts, he managed to look calm and nonchalant. Well, as much as possible.

Ok, so ignoring her wasn't his most brilliant idea, but it was the only one he had at the moment.

Before she could get a look at him, he continued yesterday's routine; prowl, stalk and generally show off for the humans, but it wasn't with as much energy as he had yesterday.

And this time, he pointedly kept his gaze _away _from the crowd and _her._ She would, eventually, get bored and leave, then everything would be ok. She would forget about him and Optimus wouldn't find out and lecture him again. Yeah, that's all he had to do. Ignore her.

Yeah. Right.

He grimaced slightly when he felt a painful twinge in his spark and groaned mentally in frustration.

_Why _did the very _idea _of ignoring her and making her leave make him feel so _awful_?

He'd just met - well, not 'met' met - her yesterday! There was _no real _reason for him to feel bad about ignoring her or feel sad, no, _distraught_ at the thought of never seeing her again!

Shaking his head slightly, disguising it as a simple movement to shake some imaginary dirt or whatever off himself, he tried to ignore the way his spark kept clenching painfully at the fact that he couldn't look at her, that he'd probably never see her _again _after today.

But, it _had _to be done. No one could know about what he and his friends were. Not yet, anyways.

He'd been so preoccupied with his inner ranting and struggling, that he didn't notice that the girl had disappeared from the crowd and had made her way down to the large 'window' that was just below where the other human spectators were standing; where she would be hidden from other eyes.

The sudden knocking on the glass made him snap out of his internal reverie and he swiveled his head over in its direction.

He knew he was staring; he knew there was no excuse he could make up later; he just couldn't help it; he looked at her and felt his eyes widen once more in admiration; his spark practically _leaped _in its chamber.

'_Oh Primus…she's beautiful.' _He thought dazedly.

When he'd first seen her, he'd been shocked by the beauty of her. Never in his life cycle had he seen a femme as lovely as her; cybertronian or otherwise. He didn't know what it was; if it was the golden-brown hue of her hair; he'd seen a similar color on other femmes, even a few mechs before, but none as vibrant as _hers_.

Her eyes were something else, too. After the Great War, all cybertronians were allowed to have any colored optics they wished, but they were all a single and solid color.

_Hers _were a bright grass green with hints of gold around their edges. And there were so many other details he could number, but they only made the obvious even more so.

And there she was, not eight feet away from him; with nothing but a few feet of weak earth-made glass separating them; easily dealt with, with his strength. He could just transform, break the glass, take her in his arms and…and…

His optics widened in shock.

'_What…in the __**pit**__...am I __**thinking?**__'_

He was so surprised and taken off guard by the _intensity _of his thoughts and feelings he actually started _stumbling_ backwards, to try and get _away _from the glass window, but ended up tripping over one of the fallen tree limbs that littered the enclosure and comprised his 'obstacle course'.

He managed to let out a surprised yowl before falling down a small mound that was behind the limb, rolling all the way down till he hit a wall with a soft, yet emphatic "Ooomph!"

As luck would have it, at least _his,_ anyway, helanded right next to the window. He couldn't find it in himself to care about the sounds of confusion and surprise from the other humans or their worried exclamations and queries.

At the moment, all he cared about, all he saw was the pair of gold-green eyes that had locked onto his, staring at him in shock, worry and a little amusement. It didn't even matter that he was on his back, looking at her upside-down. All that mattered were those eyes.

And that's when he knew he was in trouble.

And, oddly, he couldn't care less about it.

_**-End Flashback-**_

From that day onward, Ashley would visit him as many times as she could.

At first, she'd felt guilty about causing the feline to react like that; it had been _glaringly _obvious that he hadn't been expecting to see her again, specially so close, and had been shocked into stumbling into an, unfortunately comical, 'trip' down that small mound. But she'd stopped feeling guilty weeks ago, now she couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her as she remembered the look on poor Freckles' face.

Yes, she'd named her new 'friend' 'Freckles', simply because of all the little spots that littered the bridge of his nose. Yes, it was lame, but she really couldn't bring herself to keep calling him 'cheetah', now that she knew he was more than just a simple animal.

And even though something told her that he probably had another name, she couldn't help but feel that her nickname suited him. She smiled fondly at the feline in question, as she sat in what had become her usual bench in the 'Face-to-Face' room.

Luckily, everyone's curiosity and excitement over the new animals had faded within the week and the zoo now had only its regular income of visitors; which wasn't that many during the weekdays and especially during the winter. This meant that she and Freckles had the chance to 'hang-out' without anyone noticing anything strange.

Freckles was currently running around, chasing after a stray piece of cloth that had probably blown in from the street; basically, he was goofing off, as always.

She'd come to discover that her new friend had quite the energetic and playful personality. Now that he didn't have to 'hide' from her, at least while they were alone, he wasn't holding back anymore. The intelligence, the _person _that she'd seen in his deep green eyes that first day was now shining through like a beacon.

When it was just the two of them, of course.

Turning her attention back to her sketch pad, she couldn't help but smile softly at the drawing she was finishing up. It was Freckles, running around just like he was doing now, except she drew him in a small prairie, filled with some of her favorite flowers, orchids and lilacs, blooming all around.

Another detail was that _she _was in it as well, sitting on a small blanket, her knees pulled up to her chest, her arms loosely wrapped around them and her chin resting on them, a content smile on her face as she watched her cheetah run around the plain clearly enjoying himself.

She blushed slightly; yes, _her _cheetah.

She couldn't help it; she'd started feeling slightly…possessive, of her new friend since she'd discovered there was more to him that at first glance. She knew his secret, well, part of it, and she felt honored that the young feline had trusted _her_ with it. Her. No one else. And she wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible.

She knew she was being selfish, and a little obsessive, but she really didn't care. She still went to school and did her work; she still helped out with the chores around the apartment; she never stayed out past her usual self-imposed curfew and she didn't neglect her friends when they needed her.

So, as far as she was concerned, everything was ok and there was no need for her friends to worry.

Not that that stopped Rosie from doing so…

_**-Flashback—**_

_Earlier that day…_

"Ash, what is going on?" Rosie finally managed to corner Ash before she left for the zoo…**again. **

"Why do ya keep going to that place? You're barely ever here!"

"Oh, Rose, you worry too much. I'm fine, honest!" Ash tried to reassure her friend, while trying to walk around her and head for the door.

" 'Fine'? You call spending every free moment you have at a **zoo** with a **cheetah **'fine'? _Nena_, _estas loca?_" Ok, this was getting out of hand. The first few days it was ok, but for three **weeks**?

"You're becoming obsessed!"

Ash started feeling a little frustrated and defensive. "No, I'm not! I've just found some new inspiration for my drawings, that's all! You know how I am with my art." She crossed her arms, and glared defiantly at her friend.

Rosie scowled slightly at her friend's tone, but then softened it with a look of pure worry. "Ash, _cariño_, you're like my sister, I'm just looking out for you…I don't want you to get hurt. And I'm startin' to really worry…"

Ash herself couldn't stay mad and uncrossed her arms and hugged her sister tightly. "I know, Rosie-posy, and you're like my sister, too. But I'm fine, honest, I am! I'm just being usual old me; like a dog with a bone, y'know?" She smiled reassuringly, and then teased lightly. "Besides, I doubt Freckles can break through a three foot thick pane of bullet-proof glass~"

Rose hugged back, groaning in fond exasperation. "_Ay Dios_, you **named** it? Y'know, never mind. Just promise you'll be careful, _'ta bien_?"

She giggled in response. "He, not it. And yes, I promise to be careful. Now," Finally, she managed to step around her sister and walked for the door. "I'll see ya at dinner, ok? Love ya, sis!"

_**-End Flashback-**_

That little 'discussion' had been this morning, and Ash felt slightly guilty at making her friend/sister worry so much and for lying to her. Because, yes, Freckles _was_ her new artistic inspiration; the many, _many _drawings of him and herself were obvious proof of that, but it _wasn't _the only reason she came back.

But, she couldn't exactly tell her best friend that she thought the rescued cheetah was far, _far _more…intelligent, than what everyone else believed. She snorted at the thought.

'_Oh yeah, then Rose will __**really **__flip her lid…although, that __**would **__be a pretty funny sight…' _

She snickered softly to herself at the image of the 5 foot Latina girl cussing her out creatively in Spanish _and _English.

She almost laughed out loud when the image shifted to Rosie as a Chihuahua…Oh, Lord. She just _had _to draw that!

Back to her original thoughts, she knew all she could do for now was come by and 'hang out' with the feline, hoping that one day she could discover just _what _it was that made him special…or the day he would trust her enough to show, or maybe even _tell_ her, himself.

Until then, she would fully enjoy her time with her friend, creating new ways to draw him and herself in adventures together.

* * *

><p>After that second day, Cheetor had decided to succumb to the inevitable. The girl knew his secret, or, well, part of it. And apparently, she decided she wasn't going to tell anyone, which made him sigh in relief.<p>

At least he was safe from Optimus' wrath…for now. Shaking the negative thoughts from his head, he concentrated on his inanimate 'prey'.

The small piece of organic cloth wasn't much for 'prey', but he'd come to realize that his new 'friend' (because, really, what else could her call her?), smiled and seemed to giggle happily at his 'antics', as Rattrap had once called his energetic actions. And he liked it when she smiled, so he decided to just swallow his pride and act like a youngling, if only so he could see that lovely smile on her face.

The young mech still marveled at the feelings he was experiencing while around the human female, but decided to just go with them. He'd figure them out eventually. All he knew was that he liked to see her happy and that he'd do anything to make her smile. End of story. Rattrap would probably laugh and torment him over that…

Speaking of the rat…Where _was _he? It had been almost a full human lunar-cycle since they'd gone missing. Surely he'd started looking for them…Then he snorted in derision.

'_Yeah, right. Like that mech's ever thought 'bout others before himself. He's probably happily fixing the ship and planning to leave us on our own until he's finished, if even that!"_

The thought almost made him growl, but stopped himself when he remembered that Giggles (well, he couldn't keep calling her 'human' or 'girl' now, could he? And it wasn't like he could ask what her name was…), was very perceptive of his moods and would quickly realize something was wrong.

So, he simply accepted the current situation and went with it; besides, if he wasn't as adaptable as he is, he probably wouldn't have joined Optimus' crew.

Speaking of the Big Bot, Cheetor hadn't seen or spoken to him since they'd arrived at the zoo. Which worried him because then, _how_ could they plan their escape if they couldn't talk to one another? Sure, Rhinox said that so long as they remained in beast form the humans wouldn't know about them, but still…It wasn't as if they could keep up the act for too long.

He certainly didn't; evidence being Giggles sitting happily outside in the small windowed room, scribbling something on her datapad…well, he assumed it was some sort of datapad.

That thought completely derailed the rest of his train of process.

Every day that she came to visit him, she would always pull out that strange, white square and a small stick that she used to scribble on it. Just what _was _she doing? Was she studying him and making notes?

There were dozens of things she could be doing, and all he could do was wait until she showed him or he found some way of looking without getting found out by others.

Bringing his attention back to the piece of cloth, he realized it was gone, probably got blown away while he was lost in his processings. Oh, well. He shrugged his hunches and started walking over to the window, sat down and observed his friend concentrate hard on whatever it was that she was doing.

He couldn't help but smirk when he noticed her glossa (Did humans call it a glossa?) was sticking out slightly from the right corner of her mouth. She looked so cute…

Suddenly getting a devious idea, he decided to be a little bold, but not before making sure no one was watching him, and tapped on the glass, like she'd done that first time.

* * *

><p>Ash was focusing so hard on her drawing that when she heard the light tapping on the glass, she snapped her head up in surprise; thinking it was one of the zoo people or a guard coming to let her know the zoo was closing or something (it wouldn't have been the first time she'd lost track of time).<p>

What she saw, though, was _not _what she was expecting…

Freckles was standing _right there_, in front of the glass; it was the closest he had _ever _been to her. But that wasn't what had her staring at him like a deer caught in head lights…

He was _smirking _at her! In a sort of secretive amusement, like he was sharing an inside joke with her.

When he saw he had her attention, he nodded towards the upper veranda, where the visitors came and observed him, and he rolled his eyes in mock-annoyance, as if saying: _'If only they knew, huh?' _

Oh, so that's what he was grinning about. She couldn't help but giggle and nod in agreement.

Then, he smirked again and winked. _Winked!_ Ok, so she knew he was just being cheeky and stuff, but still, she couldn't help herself, she blushed in embarrassment and tried to hide her face behind her hands.

'_Oh Lord…Why the heck am I reactin' like this? He's a __**cheetah!**__ It's not like he's flirting…'_

The very idea, even as absurd as it was, made her blush even more and she tried to make herself invisible to the feline by turning away slightly; totally missing the feline's surprised and curious look at her reaction.

She did look back, peaking through her fingers, when she heard him tap on the glass again. He had a confused look on his muzzle, his head tilted slightly. She wanted to look at him and smile reassuringly, but the whole 'flirting' thing kept wiggling around in her head and she just couldn't do it; she hid her face again, trying to will her blush away and to stop thinking such silly things.

When she _did_ manage to control her over-active imagination and look back at her friend, she felt all her embarrassment wash away and be replaced by an awful guilt.

Freckles looked absolutely _distraught_; his ears and hunches were slumped and there was a guilty and almost scared look on his face.

'_Oh no! He probably thinks he did something wrong! Oh, stupid, __**stupid **__me!' _

She mentally chastised herself and immediately went over to the window. They were now only separated by the three foot glass window. And how she wished they weren't!

Going down on her knees, she was now eye-level with the sad feline. She tapped on the glass, getting him to look up into her eyes, and smiled warmly at him, hoping that her eyes could say what her voice wanted to.

'_It's ok, Freckles, you didn't do anything wrong.'_

He actually seemed to understand and in a moment of delighted surprise she realized that she could understand what his eyes said as well.

'_I thought I did something wrong, that you were mad at me…' _

His eyes turned away a little in guilt.

She tapped again and smiled reassuringly, shaking her head slightly.

'_I'm not mad, it's ok.' _Her smile turned sheepish. _'I'm sorry I worried you, guess I overreacted…' S_he shrugged her shoulders slightly.

He grinned, sheepish as well, back at her. _'It's ok, it was my fault too,' _

Then his grin and his eyes twinkled playfully. _'But it was funny, though…'_ His hunches started shaking, like he was laughing silently.

Ashley was completely fascinated by what was going; they were having an actual _conversation. Without_ words! She couldn't help but giggle softly, grin and raise her right eyebrow in the universal sign of _'Oh, really?' _

Her own smile turned devious, and she mimicked a frightened face and started stumbling back and dramatically falling down, making sure she was looking at him upside-down, grinning in devious glee at him.

'_Like __**you're **__one to talk~' _Her eyes said, giggling slightly the stunned look on his face.

She absolutely lost it, though, when it melted into a look of mock-affront that crossed his face and he _actually stuck his tongue out at her! _

She actually had to hold her sides to keep from falling apart, she was laughing so hard. Once more, she was glad she was alone down there or someone would've called the 'men in white coats' already. As it was, she probably would've called them herself if she hadn't already been 100% _sure _that she wasn't crazy.

She blearily managed to see Freckles through her tearing eyes, trying to hold down his own laughter, his shoulders shaking almost violently in silent laughter, eyes shining brightly in joy.

And just as she was managing to get a hold of her mirth, he went and pulled his own 'revenge' when he started mimicking her 'drawing face', as Rose had once called it.

He started doodling on the dirt with one paw while his tongue stuck out, overly exaggerated, his eyes crossed and with a look of mock-concentration on his mug. She started giggling madly again.

They continued making faces at one another until they had to stop when a curious passerby had headed into the room, asking Ash if she was alright. She'd immediately pulled out her cell phone and dismissed his worry as a 'funny text her friend had sent'. Once the man was gone, both friends shared a look before promptly starting to laugh again, but this time more careful not to be so…rambunctious.

Ashley couldn't believe how much fun she was having; she had never laughed this much and this whole-heartedly. With a brilliant smile for her companion, she realized that she was _happy,_ well and truly _happy. _

Sure, she'd been _content _with her life and with her small motley 'family', but actual happiness had eluded her…until now.

As unlikely as their friendship was, it was everything that she'd ever wanted; someone who understood her and that she understood back. There may still be many things they didn't know about each other yet, but that only made her want this just that much more.

* * *

><p><em>A little fluffiness always makes my day better and brighter~! What about you my dear readers~? X3 Review, please~! <em>

_**A/N: **__Spanish-English glossary_

_Nena, estas loca? – _Girl, are you crazy?

_Cariño – _Honey or Darling

_Ay Dios – _Oh God

'_Ta bien? – _Ok?


	5. The Huntress and The Beast

_**Disclamer: **Transformers/Beast Wars are not mine...*sniffle*..._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4: The Huntress and The Beast<strong>

* * *

><p><em>White Mountains Forest, New Hampshire, Darksyde, a month after the crash…<em>

It had been a lunar cycle. A full, Primus-forsakenlunar cycle!

Just how long would he and his crew of incompetent excuses for Predacons _be_ stuck on this Primus-forsaken, backwater _planet_?

They had no communications, no weapons, no _ship; _nothing! It had been mere _luck _that their CR chambers were still functioning; and had they _needed _them. The 'landing', for lack of a better word, had been, to put it mildly, _disastrous_; not a single one of his men had been left unscathed.

Himself included.

Not only had they lost their ship and were stuck on this filthy, _organic _mudball; they were stuck here with a bunch of _Maximals_; whom they had no idea as to their current location since their 'landing'.

'_Not that they were a threat from the beginning, but it __**is**__ best to know where your enemies are, yes…' _

As Megatron continued his internal 'musings', he noticed that most of his soldiers were trying to busy themselves with fixing the ship (or at least looking busy) and keeping out of his way.

After all, an enraged Megatron was bad for their health; well, for _anyone's _health, really. Even more so since he took such a…_terrifying_ alt. mode. A rampaging tyrannosaurus rex was _not _something any one of them wanted to call attention to.

And for the past local lunar cycle, they had all been taking turns in the two CR chambers they possessed and assessing the ship's damage; licking their wounds, to put it plainly.

And, to top it off, for all of that lunar cycle he had ordered for _none of them_ to leave the ship, they did not need to draw any unnecessary attention to themselves, Maximal or local; and they were _all _starting to get antsy.

That was why they remained quiet, very much afraid that even the smallest sound would make the giant dino-lord snap and start tearing into them all like a sharkticon to a wounded mech.

Then, it was like the very thought had triggered said stomping mech, he growled loud and dangerously, "Would _someone _give me _some _sort of report? This silence is starting to grate on my circuits! Scorponok!"

'Uh, y-yes, sir!" The scorpion-guised mech came rushing into the deck and anxiously saluted, his red visor flickering nervously. "Uh, y-you summoned me, my Lord?"

"What is the status of my ship? Do we at least have our weapons systems back? And what of our navigations systems?"

The black and dark grey colored mech swallowed nervously as he hesitantly shook his head, "N-no, sir, the…the ship was very heavily damaged in the, uh, crash…it-it's going to take a while to fix-urk!"

He barely manage to stammer the 'report' out, before Megatron's T-Rex head-shaped right servo grabbed him roughly, its teeth closing dangerously into his vulnerable neck cables.

"W-wait, Lord Megatron!"

"I _know _that the ship is damaged, you fool! What I _need _to know is if you are any _closer_ to _fixing _it?" He stated in a low, enraged snarl.

"I-I would be-urk! If I had any help!" Scorponok managed to groan out, his own pincer-like servos gripping at Megatron's arm, trying to squirm his way out of his hold.

"Help? _Help_? What do you mean you need _help_? There are _four _other Predacons here; so do not give me any _excuses_ about needing help!" He threw his 'Second-in-Command' angrily at a wall and scowled deeply at him.

Bringing himself painfully back up from where he'd crumpled after hitting the wall, the scorpion gasped for air to cool his struggle induced overheated components, "B-but my Lord, the only other mech here that knows about interstellar ship mechanics is Tarantulas!"

"Tarantulas?" Ah, yes. The spider; he was an odd one, that mech. A mech that bore close and _careful _watching.

Speaking of which… "And where _is _that maniacal spider? I haven't seen him since he downloaded his beast mode…"

His only answer was silence. No one had seen the spider much after that, either, other than…

"Yes, Waspinator?"

The green and yellow mech shuffled forward nervously from where he had, more or less, tentatively raised his servo to speak, and started to fidget and buzz nervously, "Well, uhm, Wazzpintor zee Spider-bot a few cyclezz ago. Had said zzomething about scouting area…"

The tension at that moment was so thick, not even a laser scalpel might've been able to cut through.

And then…

"HE WHAT?" Megatron thundered, "Why that insolent, pit-spawned, eight-legged INSECT! How DARE he disobey a direct order?"

The buzzing mech let out a garbled, terrified buzz/shriek and ran to hide behind a mech the color of blood with sharp features and what appeared to be wing shaped blades on his arms. Terrorsaur simply looked at the buzzing mass of shaking circuits and shook his head in exasperation, with a look of 'Why me?' on his faceplates.

"It seems you do not have as much control over your men as you first believed, _Lord _Megatron." A scratchy, rough voice sneered condescendingly from a shadowy corner of the bridge deck.

As Megatron turned in the voice's direction, the mech stepped into what little light was available in the room, showing he had bronze and dark blue plating with interspersed patches of scaly looking hide, it was brown with black or darker brown stripes; his eyes were blood red and his lips were curled in a sneering snarl, showing a mouth filled with needle sharp fangs that matched his equally sharp clawed hands.

Dinobot had been one of the first Predacons to join this 'venture', but ever since then, the warrior had been having second thoughts about his supposed 'leader's competence.

"Oh? And have you something to _say _about that, Dinobot?" The words were said with such a forced blandness, they almost sounded rhetorical.

"Indeed, I do." Straightening himself to his full height, scowling darkly into the Predacon Lord's optics.

"_You _are a **failure, **Megatron!"

Megatron's left optic twitched slightly, but remained emotionless, then asked quietly "_What _did you call me?"

"You heard. Not only did you _fail_ in destroying the Maximals when you had the chance; you also _failed_ to bring us to the right planet, for it is quite obvious that _this_ is not the one described in the Golden Disk! We can't even be _sure_ what the planet truly is like because of the Disk's encoding! We stole the slagging thing and flew half way across the galaxy for _**nothing! **_You _**idiot! **_" He produced said object, a golden datadisk with ancient cybertronian glyphs on its front, and threw it angrily at Megatron's peds.

"You are an incompetent and a fool; completely unworthy of being our leader! Thus, I challenge you to battle, Megatron! The winner shall lead the Predacons and the loser…shall be _destroyed!_"

Glancing casually at his Second, Megatron gave him a subtle signal, then turned his attention back to the overzealous Raptor and said in a droll, bored voice, "Very well, Dinobot. Let us take this outside, yes?" Waving his normal servo to the exit hatch, allowing Dinobot to go out first.

The warrior didn't think twice as he headed out into the bitter cold air of their current location; a forest with vegetation as tall as and _taller _than Megatron, as far as their optics could see, all covered in a crystallized frozen hydrogen/oxygen compound.

He should have _known_ better than to have turned his back on the tyrant.

As soon as his clawed peds touched the frozen ground outside the ship, he heard Megatron state almost nonchalantly, "You know, Dinobot, it takes more than just simple courage to be a leader. Why, it takes cleverness and cunning as well, isn't that right…Scorponok?"

By the time the mech realized what was happening and could turn around to face the traitorous tyranno; he was being blasted in the back with a pair of missiles.

And his last conscious thought, other than the processor numbing pain and that he was flying through the air, was that he was going to make Megatron _pay_. Dearly.

And as Megatron observed, smugly satisfied, his once prized warrior fly off deeper into the mountain side's forest, he scoffed in a disgusted tone, "Loser."

Turning back to his remaining men, he gave them a dark, deathly glare, "Anyone _else _that wishes to _challenge _me?"

Every mech quickly shook their heads and went back to what they were doing, once more keeping themselves quiet and out of Megatron's way.

* * *

><p><em>Deeper in the White Mountains, a few hours later…<em>

As his systems came back online; Dinobot became aware of two things. One; he was on his back, which hurt like _the fragging __**Pit, **_along with his left side. Then his repair systems _graciously _informed him that the majority of his back was heavily damaged and leaking energon, and his side was wide open and _also_ leaking energon. If he didn't stop the 'bleeding' he was sure to offline or go into stasis lock. Well, that was just fragging wonderful.

The second thing was a feeling that took him a few nanoklicks to recognize, no thanks to his damaged state.

He was being watched.

His optics snapped open faster than he ever remembered having done; his head turned towards where the feeling was coming from. And there, not 10 feet from him, was what looked like a human. A female human.

But this was no ordinary human female; at least, not from what information he'd gathered from the species during his forced confinement in the _Darksyde; _it had been pathetically easy to hack into the humans' communications networks.

Where most of this planet's females wore brightly colored cloths over their bodies and at times wore too little; showing too much of their flesh to be considered 'decent' (even cybertronian pleasure-bots wore more armor than most of the human femmes he'd seen on the information network!), this one was wearing a cloak that hid most of her frame, colored in a combination of whites, grays and blacks; he recognized it as camouflage coloring. It made her look as though she were melting from out of the forest. Her face was mostly covered by a black piece of cloth over her lower face and neck. But her eyes were visible; and were a sight to behold.

They were the color of tempered steel, and just as sharp as a blade. They were narrowed at him, unwavering and impassive, even as he glared darkly at her.

He privately, and grudgingly, admitted that this human was very brave to be so calm and collected in the face of something she had quite possibly never seen. Brave…or foolish.

That's when he noticed that her hands were not empty. She was armed; he vaguely remembered reading something about human weapons…oh yes, a bow and arrow. And she had them pointed at _him_.

Ah, so, she was _far_ from being a helpless femme, then.

Had he'd been in his normal energy levels, he would have scoffed at the primitive excuse for a weapon, laughed at it, even.

But, he was in no condition to do either. Weak and primitive it may be; but in his current state, a well placed blow could very well offline him. And by the familiarity and ease with which the human handled the weapon…It was glaringly obvious she was _very_ well versed in its use.

But she didn't use it. She just stood there, staring at him stoically, studying him, her weapon pointed at him, but not drawn to full extent. It didn't fool him though; he recognized a hunter, a warrior, when he saw one.

One false move…and it would be the last thing he ever did.

Not like he could do anything at the moment, though…The thought almost made him scoff a bitter laugh.

_This_ is how he would die? Wounded, deserted and _betrayed_ by the one he once thought a worthy leader, in some unknown alien planet with not a chance of ever returning to his home planet? And at the hands of an _organic, _no less?

Primus had a bitter sense of humor…

Finally, his patience started wearing thin at the human's lack of action, and he managed to find the strength to grind out his annoyance.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Finish me." His voice was low, rougher than usual. His lip plates curled in self-disgust; he _hated _sounding weak. Then, he bit out sardonically, "Or are you going to stand there and stare at me all cycle?"

If she was surprised at his sudden outburst, she didn't let it show; she merely kept staring at him and kept her bow at the ready.

Suddenly, her eyes slid from his and narrowed in on his injured side, then returned to his optics. Her expression didn't change, but her stance did; she wasn't completely relaxed but she wasn't tensed for an attack anymore. She lowered her bow slightly and took a cautious step in his direction.

His optics widened slightly in surprise, but recovered quickly, scowling and growling warningly, "What do you think you're doing?" He moved to sit up, but flinched when he only managed to aggravate his wound, a pained hiss escaping him.

She didn't say anything, not even a small sound. She only glanced at his wound, then back into his optics and took another tentative step.

"What? You won't kill a wounded opponent? Were our positions altered, _**I **_would _not_ show you such mercy…" He sneered at her, but he knew he was lying. His warrior's honor and pride would not permit him to fight a wounded enemy, either. But, his pride would not allow him to accept another's help so easily. Besides, there was something about this femme that unnerved him...

The femme seemed unimpressed by his words; in fact, she seemed surer of her actions. The look in her eyes was one of determination, or perhaps stubbornness and she took another, more confident step towards him.

Then, both their attentions were grabbed by a loud rustling coming from the bushes to their right.

Dinobot tried once more to sit up, so he could at least face this new threat without feeling so vulnerable, but it only made him clutch at his wound and hiss painfully once more; he could barely hold himself partially up on his right elbow.

The female, however, immediately turned fully towards the sound's origin, placing herself between it and his wounded form, crouching low and bringing her bow up, fully drawn and ready for whatever may come, her eyes narrowed and searched swiftly for the sounds' source. They waited in tense silence for what seemed like an eternity, when…

A low, predatory growl was their only warning before a large gray colored feline came running out of the brush, roaring in premature victory. The female let her arrow fly, but the cat came too fast and avoided it, jumping and nearly flying over a fallen tree trunk and landing, claws extended, on the human.

The only thing that kept the feline off her now was her bow, which she had immediately brought forward and was now using to keep the bobcat's open maw away from her neck. But it wouldn't keep it away for long…

Dinobot didn't think. He quickly looked around him for some sort of weapon or something, and discovered a rather large rock, grabbed it, took careful, but quick, aim and threw it at the roaring feline. He smirked in satisfaction at the loud "**THUD!**" and the pained yowl that the cat released.

It worked, the cat forgot about the human; but now its attention was on _him._ Had he'd been in better condition, he would've dispatched the creature in a manner of astroseconds.

But, as it was, all he could do was glare and snarl defiantly at the four-legged organic. This was it; he was just about to entrust his Spark to Primus when he caught the gleam of metal just behind the feline's haunches.

What happened next was so fast; he would come to question later how a human could ever move with such speed.

The human woman launched herself at the feline, struggling with it for a few klicks, when her left hand started grabbing at its legs, managing to grab one and pin it down. Then her right, which held an impressive looking blade, came down swiftly into the feline's neck. It jerked and yowled pitifully one last time; then it was still and silent.

The female pulled the knife out, and pulled out a cloth from somewhere on her side, then started cleaning the blood off her blade, looking entirely nonchalant the whole time.

That's when Dinobot, snapping out off his shocked stupor, realized that the cloak's hood had fallen back as well as the piece of cloth that covered her lower face, probably during the struggle when the cat pounced on her.

Her features were as sharp as her eyes; high cheek bones, a small, straight nose and lips that were thin, but shapely, yet were set in a firm line; face framed by locks of chestnut brown hair that escaped from a high set, messy bun.

Her skin was tanned, though it was far from perfect; he could see various sized and shaped scars that were scattered along her face and, apparently, down her neck, though he couldn't see since the cloth that had covered her was still wrapped there. But she didn't seem to be bothered by them as she did not try to wrap her mask back up and hide them.

And, since he was now giving her a closer study, he could see she was tall, she would probably reach him mid-chest or near his shoulders and she was well built, toned, not bulky or wiry.

He also realized that her face and part of her cloak was splattered with the dead feline's blood; although, she apparently didn't seem to notice…or care. She simply stood, tall and proud, cleaning her knife without a second thought as to her appearance. Looking for all the world like the true hunter she was. The total confidence with which she held herself made her look very…attractive.

And for some strange, and unsettling, reason Dinobot's circuits started to tingle slightly and his cooling fans activated. His eyes widened incredulously when he noticed this; roughly shaking his head to rid himself of such shameful thoughts.

'_What… the slagging __**Pit **__am I __**thinking?**__'_

He blamed the shameful and untoward thoughts on his lack of…female company, for lack of better phrasing, for the past several vorns. To think such things about a femme he had barely just met, not to mention an _alien…_

And yet, he could not bring himself to be disgusted by this; unsettled, yes, but not disgusted. If anything, it _intrigued_ him; made his situation more..._interesting_. Most of the femmes he'd met were whinny, clingy and cared more about their polish and finish than anything else. But this one…

He'd never met a female like this, she was a warrior and that made him intrigued, curious; he could tell there was more to her and he wished to know what. And just why she made him feel like this.

Apparently, he'd been staring at her intently long enough that she snapped her head to regard him; her eyes still burning with the flame of victory from the fresh struggle and consequent kill, turning her eyes into spheres of molten metal.

Dinobot felt his spark pulse erratically in his chestplates and his circuits heat again. He quickly looked away and growled, disgusted at his lack of self-control.

He could feel her eyes studying _him _now, and he had to resist the urge to squirm. Him, squirm? It was a ridiculous thought, yet that was what he felt. He tried to turn further away from the femme (He was NOT hiding!), only to be painfully reminded of his injuries.

He'd been so preoccupied with the femme and then the cat that he'd almost entirely forgotten his damaged back and side; and he was still bleeding…

That's when he heard the female's footsteps come towards him, he barely had time to turn his head her way, when she suddenly kneeled next to him and started to inspect his wounds. Her hands barely brushed his injured side, when he let lose a pained snarl and roughly grabbed her wrists, "Watch what you're doing, human! That hurts!"

She stared at him squarely in the optics, her eyes softening just the smallest bit in apology, and didn't struggle or try to leave his grip, but she did nod her head; an acknowledgement that she understood she was to be careful.

Dinobot glared at her for a few more nano-klicks, before letting her go and looking away, silently and grudgingly giving her permission to continue her inspections.

She carefully and gently, so at odds with how she'd acted just moments before, inspected his left side, and then pushed gently at him, signaling him to try and turn over. He did so, biting back every snarl and curse he wanted to scream and howl, finally lying on his uninjured right side and showing her his back. Her silent, almost inaudible gasp was the first sound he'd ever heard her make, and it didn't reassure him.

There was a moment of silence, when he heard the rustling of fabric, and suddenly, there was an almost blinding pain as the human pressed _something, _her cloak by the feel and sound he'd heard, against his back and injured side. Hard.

This time, he _didn't _hold back.

"**GRAAAH! You pit-spawned, slagging femme! I fragging told you to be fragging careful! FRAG!"**

The human remained quiet and once again prompted him to turn and lie on his back, which now burned like the **Pit**, then tied her cloak _tightly _around him, all the while ignoring his murderous, black glare. It only cleared slightly when his systems informed him that the leaking had been staunched, if only for the moment.

Once she was done tying up the improvised 'bandage', she stood up and offered him her hand. He stared at it blankly for a moment, an optic ridge raised, looking up at her with a 'You have got to be kidding me' look. She couldn't possibly believe she could _lift him up_, much less manage to drag or carry him anywhere…

But the slight indignant scowl on her face told him that, yes, she fully intended to help him up and carry his sorry aft wherever it was she was taking him.

Letting out a sharp exhale, he grouchily took the offered hand, and although it took some struggling, she, surprisingly, managed to get him up and placed herself under his left side, wrapping her arm around his lower back, carefully, and grabbing his right side, giving him support so he could walk. Her head almost reached his upper chest, if not his shoulder, so he could place his servo, careful of his claws, on her shoulder and keep himself up, mostly.

Once he was securely on his peds, the female started leading him in the direction she had come from. He had no idea where she was taking him, but anything was better than the bitter cold, hard ground, in some Primus-forsaken forest.

* * *

><p><em>A cave, few minutes later…<em>

As Dinobot and the huntress made their way through the forest, he'd tried not to put his full weight on the human; she may not be weak, but he was certain he would crush her if she took his full weight.

But it was getting harder as every step felt heavier, more difficult; his intakes got deeper and more ragged. He was certain he was going to lock up any klick now…

Then the female squeezed his side prompting him to look at her, and she motioned towards something in front of them; he looked and saw a cave. It took all his self restraint not to sigh loudly in relief. He would _**not **_show any more weakness in front of the human.

When they entered, he took stock of his surroundings and the items within that were scattered or piled in different areas of the rather spacious cave.

On one wall, the pelts of many animals hung from small hooks or rock protrusions, and a few were piled up in a back corner of the cave. The other wall was _covered_ in weapons of different sizes and shapes: daggers, knives like the one she used, bows of different sizes, spears made of wood and stone…and one sword.

The sword caught his attention and made him even more curious about his…his what? Companion? Savior? His lip curled up in contempt, but he couldn't deny that the human _had_ saved him. Not that he was about to admitted it out loud...

He was snapped from his inner thoughts when the female stopped and pushed, gently, at him, trying to get him to sit. When he looked down, he noticed they were at the pile of furs, and now that he was closer, he noticed the femme's scent permeated the furs.

'_Hmm, this must be her berth'_, he mused silently.

He gingerly sat down, hissing loudly in pain; and groaned in relief when his weight settled into the soft, warm furs. Then he felt the femme continue to push at him; she wanted him to lie down.

He complied, gladly so, considering he was starting to get dizzy, but voiced his doubt filled thoughts in a rough growl; though it lacked the threatening bite it had earlier, the lack of energon finally starting to affect him. "Do not waste your time, human. My injuries are _beyond_ any medical knowledge you may possess. Without a medic from my kind, I am done for."

As he opened his optics (when had he closed them?) to look up at the female, he saw a slight look of uncertainty on her face, but it was quickly replaced by a look of steely conviction.

He scoffed softly, of course this human wouldn't stop, it had been obvious since the beginning that she was a stubborn spark.

He felt her tug gently at the impromptu 'bandage'; letting her arms reach under him to undo the knot and he tried not to shiver at the touch of her skin against his artificial flesh and armor pieces.

Damn the human! And damn himself, as well! He had better control than this! He was only grateful that she probably thought that his shivering was due to pain from the wound.

When the cloak was removed, and immediately thrown away, he felt her hands once again prod at his wounds, removing a few pieces of debris, leaves and such, from his wound. He winced, but managed to keep silent; she got up quickly and ran over to a plastic barrel and placed a bucket into it. He saw a clear liquid drip from it as she pulled it out; water, the hydrogen/oxygen compound that covered the frozen ground outside, his processor supplied helpfully. What was she up to?

Before he could blink, she was sitting next to him again; the bucket of water on her other side and a clean piece of cloth in her hand. That's when it clicked; she was going to clean his wound.

Huh, it seemed the human had more sense than most mechs he'd met over the vorns. He felt her gentle hands at his back, carefully removing more of the larger pieces of scrap and organic ground cover; then start washing away the dirt and dried energon. Now with his wounds unclogged, he felt his self-repair nanites activate and work on the damaged areas. It would take weeks, but he would heal; it'll be a painful process, but he'd live.

As he continued to focus on the human's soft hands, he noticed how tired he felt; so very tired. He tried to stay awake, still not sure how _much _he could trust the femme; but his recharge sequence was already commencing and he felt as each of his systems, except his self-repair, shut down.

As the fog of recharge started to cloud his processor, he didn't realize he muttered something right before he surrendered to sleep.

"Thank you."

The last thing he remembered was the woman's surprised look soften into a small smile and a hand gently caressing his helm.

Then, he knew no more.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **Please, review~ X3 Remember, constructive criticism is welcome! Flames are not.  
><em>


	6. Escape

_**Disclaimer: **__Transformers/Beast Wars is not mine, yadda yadda, you know the drill by now, people *snrk* X9_

_**Warnings: **__You may need some tissues…*sniffles*_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5: Escape<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Bronx Zoo, a week later …<em>

Cheetor didn't know if it was coincidence or if Primus had heard him, but less than a week after he'd started thinking about how he could get to Optimus and Rhinox so they could plan their escape, an emergency alert came for a large snow storm that was said to be heading their way.

The zoo was immediately closed down and all the animals were moved into a kind of warehouse/sanctuary where the cages were smaller, but at least it was warm.

In a stroke of luck, the young mech ended up in a cage (Yes, this time there was no denying it was a _cage_) right smack in the middle between Big Bot and Rhinox.

And, although he was feeling a little put-out because this probably meant they would start planning to leave soon and he'd probably never see Giggles again; he was none the less happy and relieved to see his comrades again.

As soon as the keepers and guards left, the techno-organic crew began some long overdue catching up.

"Big Bot! Rhinox!" Cheetor greeted them enthusiastically, a big toothy grin on his muzzle "Oh man, am I glad to see you guys!"

Both older mechs chuckled softly at their young friend's enthusiasm.

"It's good to see you too, Cheetor." Optimus replied, an amused and teasing undertone to his words.

"How have you been handling the situation? You haven't gotten _too_ bored, have you?"

"Nah, it's been…manageable." He answered casually; a small, cheeky smile tugging at his muzzle.

'_Thanks to a certain femme…'_

"Well, good for you. It seems we've all managed to fool our keepers, for the time being." Optimus grinned back, and then he sobered slightly before turning to the matter at hand.

"Now, on to business. Do either of you have ideas on how to escape?" He glanced between the rhino and cheetah expectantly.

"Um, well, uh…I haven't really been payin' much attention to that, Boss Bot." The young mech grinned sheepishly. "I was, uh, actually hoping you guys had a plan, heh heh…" He could feel his cheeks heat a little in embarrassment, glad he had fur to hide it.

Optimus sighed and rolled his optics (a gesture he'd observed other humans do and found expressed his exasperation quite well), then looked to the engineer/medic.

"What about you, Rhinox? Any ideas?"

"Hmmm, I have been observing a few of the humans' scheduled activities, and they seem to have very few guards during the night, not to mention the night will give us extra cover, so a nocturnal escape would be best. But," And he looked Optimus straight in the optics "it will be difficult for us to escape without arousing suspicion. There are video cameras everywhere, and probably at least one person watching them; not to mention that we can't just walk out of here, not without being seen by someone. We don't even know _where _'here' is relative to the Axalon, we could get lost and into worse trouble. Then there's the matter about the weather…" Even though their bodies were resilient, their beast modes were not built to withstand such extreme weather conditions for an extended period of time. And they couldn't just wander around in their root modes, either.

"Alright, I get the idea Rhinox." Optimus interrupted, raising a weary hand, rubbing his optics with the other.

"And I think I know the answer to this, but I'll ask anyway. Have either of you heard anything from Rattrap? At all?"

"Negative." Rhinox replied, flat and stoic. Rattrap may be an egotistic aft and jerk, but he was his friend. He wouldn't defend him, but he wouldn't speak ill of him, either.

"Our comms depend on the Axalon's comm. System functioning, and it was one of the worst damaged out of the many in the Axalon's mainframe. If we have not heard from him, it is because he has yet to fix it."

Cheetor scoffed. "How do you know he's fixing _anything_? For all we know, he could've fixed one of the escape pods and used it to leave the planet…"

He hadn't known Rattrap for long, but during the time he did, Cheetor had grown to dislike him. The rat whined and grouched over everything, and when he'd tried to make friends with him, he'd been called a naïve little kid and laughed at in his faceplates! No, Cheetor didn't like Rattrap, _at all._

"Cheetor!" Optimus scolded and frowned at the young mech. "That is no way to speak about a fellow crew member! Rattrap maybe a little…conceited, but he _is _a Maximal; and Maximals _never _leave their own behind. You should be ashamed to think like that." The commander felt truly disappointed in the feline for thinking such things.

Cheetor immediately flinched at the angry rebuke, eyes widening as he realized what he'd said. His entire body slumped down to the ground, his ears were low enough that they were flat on his head, like they'd disappeared; averting his optics in shame.

"Oh scrap, I'm sorry, Optimus. I didn't mean it like that. No, I did, but I just...I wasn't thinking when I opened my big mouth. It's just…I've tried making friends with him, but he keeps treating me like a kid, like I'm beneath him. I was just mad, I guess…I'm not the kind of bot that goes around talking bad about anyone, honest…" He looked up miserably at Optimus, then shyly over at Rhinox. "And I'm sorry, too, Rhinox, I know he's your friend, I just…"

Unable to look at either mech in the optics, he lowered himself to the ground and covered his face with his paws, trying to hide from the disapproving scowls and words that were sure to come.

Primus, he wished Giggles was here…

Optimus' anger deflated slightly when he saw how miserable the young feline looked. He _did _know that Cheetor wasn't a spiteful mech and he _had_ witnessed his attempts at trying to befriend the rat; it wasn't all Cheetor's fault.

With a weary sigh, he continued, though albeit, more gently.

"Cheetor, I know that Rattrap can sometimes be too much to handle, believe me I _know_, but we can't go around accusing our comrades of such things, especially in our current situation. We're stuck on an alien planet with no way of communicating with Cybertron, all of our crewmembers are in stasis pods floating around in space, unprotected, and we're currently outnumbered by Predacons _and _these humans. If we can't rely on one another, then what hope do we have of surviving this and going home?"

Optimus' words were solemn and true, and they made Cheetor feel worse about his own. And now that he thought about it, for all of Rattrap's sarcasm and sneering comments, he'd never called him anything worse than "Kid" or "Spots".

And there was always a small glint of amusement in his optics when he got a rise out of him, as if he were teasing a friend…

"You're right, Optimus. I really am sorry, and I'll apologize to Rattrap once we're back at the Axalon, I promise." He said firmly, looking both Optimus and Rhinox in the optics.

Optimus smiled slightly in encouragement, nodding approvingly. "Good mech. Now, back to our earlier discussion…"

Once the Rattrap issue was behind them, they began plotting/planning their escape. They figured that they'd have to wait till the weather cleared and warmed up enough that their systems wouldn't freeze by prolonged exposure.

They would also have to escape during the night, but how to deal with the security cameras was still a problem. Cheetor had suggested sneaking out of his enclosure when the camera was pointing away from him, and then cutting the output cable and rendering the camera useless, but Optimus shot that idea down.

The second the camera stopped working "mysteriously", whoever was watching the monitors would sound an alarm or inform the guards.

Rhinox suggested perhaps rewiring the camera to create a video feed loop, but he didn't have his tools with him. Not to mention he was "too slagging big" (His own words) to be inconspicuous.

Cheetor couldn't help but snigger at the comment, and Optimus looked away, looking suspiciously like he was trying to hide his face, his body shaking slightly.

The mechs sighed in resignation; they were running out of ideas.

Then there was the issue of locating where the Axalon was relevant to where _they _were. Optimus remembered that the humans had called the area 'Silver Lake Preserve'. And they all knew by now that the place they were staying in was called the 'Bronx Zoo'.

Now, if only they could get a map or something…

They sighed again.

"It seems that we won't be coming up with any ideas tonight. I suggest we all get some recharge and continue this tomorrow. Who knows? Maybe something will come to us in our sleep." Optimus stretched his joints and ambled over to the big pile of straw that constituted his 'berth'.

"Goodnight, Rhinox, Cheetor."

"Goodnight, Big Bot. Night, Big Green." Cheetor yawned as he curled into his own hay 'berth', yawning loudly one last time before closing his optics.

"Goodnight, you two. Pleasant recharge." Rhinox's answer was slightly muffled by the hay he was already lying on, recharge quickly claiming him the klick his head touched the soft, dry grass.

* * *

><p><em>Bronx Zoo indoor shelter, few days later…<em>

It had been a few days since they'd been moved to the shelter and Cheetor was starting to go stir crazy. He couldn't help it, he _hated _enclosed spaces, and all he could do about it, at the moment, was pace around like, well…like a caged animal.

Being in the _Axalon _was one thing, there was the small low orbit shuttle he tended to use when he was bored, but _this?_

He sighed heavily.

And they still hadn't come up with a decent escape plan and were all starting to think they'd never get out of this place without revealing themselves. And it didn't help that all he could think about at the moment was his human friend.

'_Primus, I miss you, Giggles. I can't stand cages, but at least if __**you**__ were here it'd be a __**lot **__more bearable…'_

His thoughts immediately ran to the young femme's smile when she sat in the 'window room', content to just watch him and himself her; her eyes sparkling in mirth and amusement whenever he decided to act silly or when he showed off to the other humans; the small secretive smirks they shared when a human would come down and make some comment about 'how smart the cheetah _seemed'._

Their thoughts he knew were always the same: _'You have __**no **__idea…'_

He sighed in frustration. Again.

Primus damnit, he may've only known the femme for a month but he _**missed**_her!

Without noticing, his frustration started to bleed out into his pacing, making it look more like stalking, his tail and ears twitching in agitation; he even growled a little.

He was so focused on the frustration of being kept away from _**his **_Giggles (and he didn't, consciously, realize the possessiveness in his statement), that he didn't realize his agitated stalking was getting the other animals riled up.

It wasn't until a strong, firm voice almost shouted at him that he snapped out of his rut. Apparently, Optimus had been trying to get his attention for a while now…

"-eetor! Cheetor!" Optimus nearly shouted, worry obvious in voice. "Cheetor, you need to calm down, you're upsetting our 'neighbors'. And we don't need the humans coming in here and trying to sedate you."

"Huh? Oh! Um, uh, s-sorry Big Bot," The young feline stammered. "I, uh, didn't notice I was…stalking." He blushed slightly, thank Primus he hadn't been muttering anything aloud like he sometimes did…

"I guess I'm starting to feel…caged in. No pun intended."

"It's alright, Cheetor." He grinned dryly. "You're not the only one, but we have to be careful, we don't need the humans coming in for anything other than feeding time. The last thing we need is for them to start keeping an optic-err, I mean, eye on us."

Groaning in exasperation, Cheetor flopped down onto his belly and stated, well, more like whined.

"What we need is a miracle…"

"Did somebody call fer a miracle~?"

The mechs immediately looked up at the source of the smug voice.

"Rattrap!"

"Rattrap! Boy, are we glad to see you!" Cheetor grinned broadly up at the rat, who was currently in beast mode, smirking down at them from the ceiling's rafters.

"What took you so long? Did you manage to fix the ship? Or the comms, at least?" Optimus had never been so happy to see the sarcastic rodent in all the time he'd known him.

But right now, he needed an update on things outside their 'temporary quarters'. "And what about the Predacons, have you heard anything about them?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Easy dere, Commander Kong. What, no 'Hello, Rattrap!' or 'Glad to see ya, Rattrap!' or 'Have any problems running 'round out in the _frickin' freezin'_ weather, like loosin' ya tail or nose'?" He crossed his arms and looked away in mock-hurt. "Geez, don't I feel loved…"

Optimus sighed and rolled his optics. That's Rattrap for you, sarcastic till the end.

"Of course, of course, silly me. How are you Rattrap? Did you have any problems getting to us?" Sarcastic? Maaaaybe just a little…

"As a matter-o-fact…"

Oh boy, here we go…

"Ahem," Rhinox managed to interrupt the impending argument by 'clearing' his throat loudly. "We are _all _happy to see you well and functioning, Rattrap, but right now we have other more…_pressing _issues at hand" He waved pointedly at the cages they were in and raised an optic ridge up at his friend and dryly stated "As you can see."

"Yeah, yeah. And it's up ta _me_ to save yer sorry afts. Typical." He snorted dismissively, and then looked expectantly at his primate commander. "So, uh…what's deh plan, Boss Monkey?"

Optimus was slightly caught off guard. "Um, well, we don't…really…have one. Yet." He mumbled, slightly embarrassed, before clearing his throat and getting back to business. "But, we _do _have a few ideas. And now that you're here, they're a lot more plausible than before."

So, they began putting Rattrap up to speed, explaining the nightly guard schedule; the cameras and their idea to form a video loop and the need to wait for warmer climate.

"As we've come to notice, we're probably pretty far from the Axalon, if it took you so long to get here and find us, so we'll have to wait till the cold cycle, or winter as the humans call it, ends."

"Ehh, it ain't _dat_ far, I took a while to find ya cuz I had to hide from deh humans and actually _find _wherever-da-frag they'd stashed ya at. Ya wouldn' _believe _how many zoos dere are in this joint! An' I couldn' exactly go 'round askin' deh humans fer directions, now could I?" Rattrap smirked cheekily.

"But, yer right Boss, it's best if we wait till it warms up. Ain't no _slaggin' _way I'm goin' out _dere _again!"

Optimus tried not groan at the rat's foul language. Cheetor may not be a child, but he was still young and impressionable. The last thing Optimus wanted, or _needed_, was _two _foul-mouthed mechs around…

"Yes, Rattrap, I wouldn't ask you to go out there again. Right now, we need to figure out what we _are _going to do. I think that Rhinox's idea of a video feed loop is perfect for giving us a few hours leeway from the humans, enough for us to lose them and head back to the ship. Now, the only problem is how. We may have to take an alternate route to remain out of the humans' sight."

Looking up at his fellow Maximal "Any ideas, Rattrap? You _did _get here undetected; I'm sure whatever way you took can work for us as well…"

"Oh, don't worry, Boss Monkey, it'll work."

The smirk on the rodent's face wasn't very comforting.

But at the moment, it was the only plan they had.

* * *

><p><em>Almost a month later, mid-March…<em>

A month.

A whole, fragging _month._

_That _was how long it took for the weather to clear up enough for them to be returned to their original holding pens. It had been near torturous. For _all _of them.

Between the cramped cages, the smells from their 'neighbors' and Rattrap's incessant _whining, _Optimus, Cheetor and even Rhinox where just microkliks away from saying 'Frag all!' and just blasting their way out of the warehouse and making a run for it.

The mechs could barely contain their _joy _when the keepers came in with the special transportation units used to transfer them from the zoo to other places.

And as soon as the transports were brought outside, they immediately noticed the difference in the climate. It was warmer, a _lot _warmer. This meant they would be implementing their plan within the week and they would finally be heading to the _Axalon_. They would finally be free.

And Cheetor couldn't help but be completely miserable about that.

Basically, he had less than a week to see Giggles and say goodbye. But he didn't want to.

Primus, he _really_ didn't.

As they made their way to the zoo, Optimus went through their parts in the plan again and the time they would go through with it. In three days.

Three days…not even the full week he thought he'd have!

And then… he would probably never see his Giggles again. Yes, Cheetor was completely and utterly _miserable. _

He just hoped that Rattrap didn't find out or he'd never hear the end of it.

* * *

><p><em>Girls' apartment, 8:00 am, three days after the zoo re-opens…<em>

Why? Why did she feel that something was going to happen? Something…she didn't even know _what _it was!

It was like a feeling of dread, anxiety; like she was waiting for _something_ to happen…It made her jumpy. Her stomach felt uneasy, like a storm was brewing in it.

And it all started the day after they re-opened the zoo and she'd gone to visit Freckles. All through the cold and stormy days and nights, all she could think about was the cheetah.

Was he warm enough? Were they feeding him right? Did he miss her? Admittedly, the last one was the most predominant on her mind.

That was quickly answered when she made it to his habitat and they saw each other face to face. The smile on Freckles face was so big, she would've wondered if it hurt…if it weren't for the fact she knew she was smiling just as widely.

Heck, they probably would've run to the other and _embraced_; if it wasn't because of the three foot thick glass window.

But then…his smile seemed to dim slightly; she didn't know why though.

_That _was the moment when the _feeling_ started to develop. It was small, barely there, more like a niggling at the back of her head, like when you forget something but don't know _what_.

It only got worse from there; especially with the way Freckles was acting. He wasn't as energetic as before, his smiles wouldn't quite reach his eyes, and she'd catch him staring at her sadly, almost forlornly when he though she wasn't looking; like he was looking at her for the last time.

This kept going for three days.

Today the feeling of dread was worse than ever; she hadn't even slept at all last night. She didn't want to get up. She really, _**really**_ didn't.

She was afraid that whatever she'd felt coming these past few days was going to happen today. But, she couldn't stay in bed all day either, or Rose wouldn't let her hear the end of how lazy she was.

Later, she'd wish she'd stayed in bed after all.

* * *

><p>"Woah, what happened to <em>you?<em>" Rose asked with a critical, and worried, raised eyebrow when she saw Ashley walk into the living room from her bedroom; looking for all intents and purposes like a zombie.

"Ya look like crap."

Ash merely gave her a sidelong, sullen glare. "Gee, thanks, Rose. You look real nice, too."

Rose's other eyebrow joined the first in surprise at the snarky and almost biting tone from Ash; sure she wasn't a morning person, but she'd _never_ acted like _that. _

"And I thought the snippy attitude was _my _thing. What's with da sudden mood switch? You comin' into your 'days'?" Although, something told her this wasn't a case of PMS…

Ash sighed heavily, "No, it's not that. I just…couldn't sleep last night." She winced slightly at how wobbly her voice sounded, like she was about to cry. She quickly cleared her throat and tried to sound reassuring, even forced a small grin to her face. "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

'_God, I'm a horrible liar…'_

"Oh, don't gimme that; of course I'm gonna worry!" She made her way over to Ash and placed one hand on her shoulder and the other on her cheek, tipping her face over to look at her. "What's wrong, _cariño?_"

"I…I don't know." She whispered softly, almost brokenly. "I've just…I've got this bad feeling in the pit of my stomach that won't go away. And it's only gotten worse; it's almost _unbearable_ today." She grimaced, and shut her eyes tightly; trying to keep the tears she felt there back.

Rosie felt her eyes widen more in worry and she immediately hugged her friend tightly. "_Ay Ash, no te preocupes, todo estará bien. _Why don't you sit down on the couch and watch some TV? Ya don't got class today, right? So just stay there and I'll call in sick at work and stay with you the whole day today, how's that sound?" She gave her sister an entreating smile.

"But, Rosie-"

"No buts. You need me more than a buncha bad tempered customers do. 'Sides," She smirked deviously "Those other girls at the diner need somethin' ta do; I've been doin' too much of _their _work as it is. Here, I'll be right back." She handed Ashley the remote.

Watching her friend leave the room with a determined stride, she just sighed in defeat, turned on the TV and decided to watch the news.

Oh, God, how she wished she hadn't.

The roiling feeling she'd had in her stomach for the past few days suddenly turned into a feeling of numb emptiness; like her stomach, heart, _everything _just plummeted into the building's lobby, four floors down.

"_In other news, Bronx Zoo officials are left baffled at the sudden disappearance of the three African animals found just months before at Silver Lake Preserve. Police have discovered that the zoo's security cameras were tampered with, rendering them useless in their hopes for surveillance footage. At the moment, the officials are going with the theory that whoever had first released the animals into the preserve may have decided to take them back. Not much is known and we'll return with more this evening in our 5 o'clock edition…"_

Ash didn't- couldn't hear anything else. It was like her world had been ripped out from under her.

That's what the feeling had been; why Freckles kept looking at her like he'd never do so again. He'd known…known that…

And that's when the reality of everything came crashing down on her.

He was gone. Freckles, her best friend, was _gone. _She'd probably never see him again…

She could feel the tears she'd been holding back run down her face; but she didn't care.

'_He's…he's gone. He's gone. __No…'_

"No. No, no, no…" She whispered brokenly, her head shaking slowly in denial; the tears coming faster.

"No, he…he can't…he wouldn't…_**No!" **_She didn't realize her voice had been getting louder with every word of denial, until she was almost shouting that last word.

"Ashley? Ash, what's wrong?" Rose came rushing in the second she heard her friend's voice heighten in distress, sitting next to her and pulling her into a warm embrace. "Ash, what is it?"

Ash simply buried her head in her friend's shoulder and sobbed in a soft, pained whisper, "He's gone."

This only made her frown in confusion, "Who's gone?"

"Freckles…he…" She got no further when more pained sobs closed up her throat.

"Freckles?" Her frown deepened, before clearing up in understanding, "The cheetah? What do ya mean it's gone?"

"I mean he's _gone,_ Rose! He's not at the zoo! I just saw the news report…" At first she was almost shouting in anguish, but her last words were a broken whisper. "They…they don't know where he, or the other animals, are…but, he can't just be gone…he _can't!_"

"_Tranquila, Ash, tranquila." _Rose hugged her friend tighter and tried to sooth her, then the rest of what she'd said registered, "Wait, the other animals? They're gone, too? Maybe whoever let 'em loose decided to take 'em back…"

But Ash was already shaking her head, "No, it's not that…it _can't_ be that…" She sighed in frustration.

"You wouldn't understand. I just…I just _know _something else happened!" She wiped at her tears roughly and when she looked back at Rose, it was with a determined frown.

Quick as a shot, Ash was up from the couch and running for her room, slamming the door closed.

Rosie, still sitting at the couch, remained there with a stunned look towards Ash's bedroom door, before she, too, was shooting up from the couch and heading to her friend's door. It was locked.

"Ashley? Ash, are you ok? What is it? Ashley!"

Ash wouldn't answer, and it worried her. All she could hear was a few rustling and shuffling sounds from within the room.

"Ashley, you open this door, _ahora mismo_!"

And the door did open; on the other side was Ash, decked out in her sweater shirt and slacks, her snow boots on her feet. The weather may have mellowed and warmed, but there was always the chance of one last snow fall. She still said nothing and walked around a, once again, stunned Rosario.

Before she could make it to the door, she was stopped by a firm hand holding her arm.

"And just _where _do ya think yer going?"

"_I'm _going to go look for Freckles. I will _not _believe he just up and left or that he got taken."

'_Not without having told me first or saying good-bye!'_

"Ashley, are you _loca_? Leave this to the police; it's none of your business! Besides, just _what _would ya do if ya _did _find him? Huh? Are ya forgetting he's a _wild animal?"_

"_He's __**not **__a wild animal! _And I don't care what everyone else thinks, he's not gonna hurt me, and I _**am **_going to find him! Now, let go!"

And with those final words, she yanked her arm free, slammed the door shut and stormed down the hallway, down the stairs to the lobby and into the street.

Now, she knew Freckles' was a smart cat, so it's only logical that the others' must be just as smart as well.

They would probably head to a place where they could get some cover from curious eyes and also someplace where they felt comfortable and secure…But where…

The parks! But, there were so _many_… She took a deep breath and let it out slowly; looks like she had a lot of ground to cover.

First stop, the park closest to the zoo: Crotona Park.

* * *

><p><em>Back at the apartment, 6 pm…<em>

She'd searched _everywhere_; the alleyways, a few abandoned buildings, all the parks she could find in the areas around the zoo; hell, she even looked in a few animal shelters, just in case.

But who was she kidding?

They were gone…_he _was gone. She'll never see him again. The first time she'd though it; her heart had dropped from her chest. Now…now it felt like it just got trampled over by a mob of New York City pedestrians.

As she made her way up the stairs to her apartment, she felt like lead weights had been tied to her feet and back; heavy and tired.

She just wanted to reach her room, lock the door, curl into her bed and cry her eyes out into her pillow.

When she opened the door, she was relieved that Rose wasn't waiting for her to grill her on where she'd been or anything.

She didn't even grab something to eat, even when she'd not eaten anything more than a hotdog all day; all she wanted was her bed.

When she did enter her room, it was to a sight she was _not _expecting to see. "Will? Wha…what're you doing here?" Her voice was a hoarse whisper and it made her cringe slightly.

"Rose called me. She told me what happened." Will answered softly, taking in the condition of her friend. She looked _awful_, almost dead on her feet. "Oh sweetie, come lie down before you fall down."

Ash didn't argue. The moment she was close enough, she let herself fall on the bed; burying her head in her pillow, refusing to look at Willow.

"Where's Rose? I thought she'd be waiting for me here to chew me out…" Her voice, though muffled by the pillow, was tired and lacked any real curiosity.

"She's at work. I told her to go, that it would help her cool down, because she was too mad right now and that the last thing you needed was getting scolded when you got back. I promised her I'd stay and wait for you; and that if you didn't come back by 10 to call the police." A tiny smile pulled at her lips at the last words, all the while she spoke she'd stroke her friend's head and back soothingly.

The smile disappeared when she looked back down at her friend. "You want to talk about it?"

"No."

"It'll help."

"No, it won't. Besides, you wouldn't understand…" Her voice broke miserably and she buried her head as far into her pillow as possible.

There was silence for what seemed like forever, when Will spoke, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible, "You feel like you're never going to be happy again; that the one person that understood you truly is gone and that you'll never see them again. That the connection you thought you had…was suddenly cut with a pair of rusty scissors, leaving a jagged wound that is never going to heal…did I get it or shall I continue?"

By mid conversation, Ash had raised her head to stare incredulously at Will, "How…?"

Will merely gave her a wry smile, "You weren't the only one who made a friend at the zoo."

Her eyes widened, " Who-? The gorilla…"

Will's smile turned sad, and her tone wistful, "At first, I thought I was going crazy, but when I kept coming back and I kept seeing him, I knew. There was this…intelligence just shining from his eyes, and the way he acted, like a human amongst animals…It reminded me of the old version of _Planet of the Apes;_ I even started calling him Brighteyes." The memory brought a watery chuckle to her lips. "I don't think he ever heard me, though…"

Shaking out of her stunned stupor, Ash inched herself closer to Will, leaning her head on her shoulder and asked softly, "How…When did you realize he was…?"

"Unique? I think it was the second time I visited him, I caught him looking at the other gorillas curiously, like he didn't understand what they were doing and then he shook his head, almost like he was saying 'I can't believe they're doing that' or 'Why am I here again?' It was really amusing. Then, he caught _me _looking and, well…" She waved her hand in a vague motion. "Things kept growing from there."

"Wow. But…I never saw you at the zoo...and I was there long enough."

"Well, I didn't go every other day like _you _did, my school schedule wouldn't allow it, but I did visit once or twice a week. Besides, you weren't exactly looking for me, now were you?" There was a light teasing tone in her voice and small smile.

Ash couldn't help but blush lightly, "No, I guess not." A short pause. "We're never gonna see them again, are we?"

The smile was gone, and replaced with a solemn, yet, comforting look, "Oh sweetie, I don't know, and neither do you; who knows, maybe we _will _see them again. Maybe the zoo will find them, or, maybe, they might even come find _us._"

'_That's a lot of 'maybes'.' _She thought quietly to herself, and then said aloud. "Y-you really think so, Willie?"

Will sighed, "I hope so, Ash, and that's all we can really do now, hope that we'll see them again."

Ashley laid her head on Willow's shoulder again, wrapping her arms around her friend as best she could; she could feel the tears coming again, her voice was small and sad, like a child who just learned her best friend was moving away and not coming back, "I'm gonna miss Freckles, Willie. So much."

"I know, Ash. I'm gonna miss Brigtheyes, too." Her own tears that she'd been holding back were now running silently down her cheeks.

Both girls cried silently as they tried to comfort one another after waking up in a nightmare neither seemed able to escape.

* * *

><p><em>Axalon, same evening…<em>

It had taken some fancy maneuvering and sneaking around, but the mechs managed to make it out of the city without getting caught or seen. Most of it was thanks to Rattrap's 'special route'; although they could've done without the horrible smell of the sewers.

None the less, they were grateful that the rat had come for them.

Once they arrived at the _Axalon_, all four mechs went straight to their own rooms; ready to finally be able to sleep in their own berths. Well, two of them, at least.

Optimus tried to sleep, but his processors kept going back to the young human female he'd met back at the zoo.

She'd been so _beautiful._ He'd never seen a being more graceful and lovely in all his travels. Not even on Cybertron; his own home world.

She was tall, but slender, almost ethereal in her grace. Her hair had been the color of a starless night sky, her eyes a lovely mix of light brown and gold specks and her skin had been an interesting shade of brownish-red, an almost copper-like color that made all of her features stand out even more.

And although she didn't seem very confident, she exuded an aura of calm that would ease the most savage of beings. He admitted to himself that he'd been entranced by her the first time he'd seen her.

And it'd surprised him when he realized the femme knew about him, but didn't say anything. She never told anyone and treated him like a friend she shared a secret with; always giving him little shy and secretive smiles that always made his spark flutter wildly.

And he couldn't help but feel horribly guilty that he never said good-bye, especially with the way he'd felt whenever he saw her. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so content…_complete_; than when he was around her. And something told him she felt the same; if those smiles she'd given him had been anything to go by.

Now…now he'd probably never see her again and he didn't even know her name.

'_Primus, I'm such an idiot…I'm so sorry, Angel…'_

Yes. An angel. An ethereal being of immense beauty and compassion. The name suited her perfectly; if he would never know her true name, at least he could call her something worthy of her beauty and serenity.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, on the other end of the hall, Cheetor wasn't even <em>trying<em> to sleep.

Who was he kidding? Sleep? When he felt like they biggest slaggard in the galaxy?

All he could do was sit on his berth with his back against the wall, his knees pressed tightly against his chestplates and his arms crossed over them.

His head was resting back against the wall, and although his eyes were staring at the ceiling, the only thing he saw was his perfect friend.

He'd never see her again. And he didn't even say a proper good-bye. He didn't even know her name. She didn't know his. There was so much he wanted to know about her, that he wanted to tell her…Now he'd never get the chance.

The horrible thoughts kept piling up until he buried his face in his arms and finally let the tears he'd been holding back all cycle run freely down his cheeks.

His intakes hitched softly, the words he wanted to shout came as a small, miserable, sobbing whisper.

"I'm_ sorry_, Giggles…"

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:**__ *wipes tears away* Oh man, I feel so miserable, having written this. But, don't worry, guys! They won't be miserable for too long, promise! Please, reaview!_

Spanish-English Glossary

_Cariño – _Honey or Darling (term of endearment)

_Ay, Ash, no te preocupes, todo estará bien – _Oh Ash, don't worry, everything will be alright

_Tranquila, Ash, tranquila – _Easy, Ash, calm down

_Ahora mismo! – _Right now!

_Loca - _Crazy


	7. Searching

_**Disclaimer: **__Transformers/Beast Wars don't belong to me…but some day…*giggles evilly and rubs hands in plotting manner*_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6: Searching<strong>

* * *

><p><em>White Mountains, Darksyde, three weeks later, Mid-April…<em>

Even weeks after the little fiasco with Dinobot, Megatron's mood was even fouler than before.

The last thing he had needed was some noble minded _fool _trying to uproot him.

No matter; he had been dealt with...Or had he?

The doubt of Dinobot's current status made him edgier. Was he alive and planning revenge? Or was he laying offline somewhere in this Unicron-forsaken, organic forest?

He knew the doubt would not leave him be; not until he knew for certain. And his plans required an untroubled processor for them to be effective to their fullest. Not to mention he was starting to get tired and annoyed with his troops fidgeting.

So long as they didn't do anything stupid; he wasn't going to eat them… yet. He chuckled at his dark humor.

But his little bout of good mood wouldn't last for long…

"Scorponok, report, NOW!"

He heard a loud crash and a pained shout and curse coming from the next room over; followed by hurried, stumbling steps.

Scorponok literally came flying around the corner, "Yes, Lord Megatron? You wanted to see me?"

"Yes. I need you to take Waspinator and Terrorsaur, leave Tarantulas behind to continue fixing the ship, and go out to look for that traitor, Dinobot. I have doubts about his functionality, or lack thereof. Besides, the last thing we need is for the _humans_ to stumble upon his chassis and find out about us before we are ready; not to mention they might be able to reverse engineer something from him. If nothing else, these humans are _adaptable_, yes…" His liplates curled in a sneer of disgust.

"Take five days and search as far as you can, but come back before that time, _without _Dinobot's remains, and there will be…consequences, yes." He ran his hand over his T-rex headed servo; the warning and threat all too clear despite his casual and nonchalant tone.

Scorponok gulped loudly and nervously, "Yes sir, Lord Megatron. Um, wha…what if he's still alive…?"

Megatron looked him dead in the optics (well, visor) and said with a deadly calm and venomous tone, "Then…you make _sure _he doesn't interfere with our plans. _Ever. Again."_

* * *

><p><em>The girls' apartment building…<em>

It had only been three weeks, but for Ashley it had seemed like an eternity since Freckles disappeared.

It had been awful, she didn't sleep or eat well, at school all her drawings and projects were centered on her cheetah to the point that her professors were starting to get annoyed and worried.

Rose had gone beyond the point of worry, and was starting to snap angrily at her whenever the topic of the missing feline would come up; which it did. A lot.

She knew she was obsessing; that there was a very real possibility; no, that it _was _probable that she'd never see her friend again. But the mere thought of just giving up was actually physically painful. She couldn't, wouldn't, give up. She wasn't that type of girl.

That's why, for this year's annual spring vacation camping trip (try as she might, she was, and always would be, a country girl), she'd be heading up to Silver Lake Preserve; the place where Freckles and the others had been found.

And, if she was lucky, she might find not just her friend, but the rest of them, as well, and she could tell her friend Willow.

The poor girl was just as worried about the missing gorilla, whom she named 'Brighteyes', as she was about Freckles. In fact, Will hadn't smiled at all since then; not honestly, anyways.

So, she'd go searching whatever areas she could during the week and a half she'd be camping up there. She just needed to run through her list of things one last time before she left.

Suitcase with a week and a half's worth of clothes.

Check.

Camping gear: tent, sleeping bag, first aid kit, camping rations, cooking gear, bug repellant ('_That's definitely already packed! Ugh, __**nothing**__ should have more than four legs!'_), hiking gear, emergency flare gun, flashlight, extra batteries, and pocket knife.

Check.

GPS tracker.

Check.

Art supplies: sketch books, paints, charcoals, coloring and drawing pencils, brushes, and camera.

Double check.

Hmm, it looked like she was ready, but she couldn't help feeling like something was missing…Something important…

Her eyes quickly looked over to the head of her bed. There, lying on her pillow was a little cheetah plushy. Ash slowly walked over to it and picked up tenderly, smiling softly at it.

Rosie had bought it for her a few days after Freckles' disappeared, to help her ease her sadness. Nothing could, or would, _ever _replace her Freckles, but the sentiment behind the gift did make her feel better.

Now, she slept every night with it, and had even started taking it everywhere with her in her art backpack. She felt a little silly, carrying around a plush like a little kid, but it made things easier.

She opened up her suitcase and gently laid him on top of her clothes, closing the bag once again.

_Now _she was ready. She would be leaving tomorrow morning. The thought made butterflies start fluttering wildly around in her stomach. What if she _didn't_ find him?

She'd already promised Rose…if she didn't find Freckles or any sign of him while she was at the Preserve; she was to stop looking altogether and move on from all this.

Ashley fervently prayed to God that she found something, _anything_ that would lead her to her friend.

* * *

><p><em>The next morning…<em>

"Are you sure about this, Ash?" Rose asked again, the fingers on her right hand worrying at the small gold cross on the red crystal rosary she always wore. She only did that when she was _exceptionally _worried and/or nervous. "I doubt you'll find anythin', but what if ya do? What then?"

Ash sighed in exasperation, but managed to keep her annoyance from her voice, "I'm positive, Rose, I'll be fine! Stop worrying so much about me. I'm a grown woman after all!"

The Latina just scoffed, "Since when?" She raised her eyebrow in obvious disbelief and crossed her arms over her chest, but her stance softened slightly; she didn't want her friend to leave with cross words hanging between them; it'd bring nothing but bad luck.

"Listen, just…promise me you'll _at least_ call every few days…y'know, so I know you're still alive."

Ashley smiled as reassuringly as possible, "Ok, I promise. And don't worry so much. I just want to know if Freckles is happy in the wild or if he really _did _get taken back by his 'previous owners' like the police keep saying."

"And what if they did? Ya gonna rescue him or somethin'?" She was being sarcastic, but she still worried Ash might _actually _try something.

"No, don't be silly! I'll call the police and park rangers, duh!"

"_Pendeja._"

"Love you, too, Rosie-posy. Now c'mon, I don't wanna miss my bus!"

* * *

><p><em>White Mountains forest, two days later…<em>

As Ivy made her way through the forest she'd called her home for the past 6 years, she mused on the events of the past few months.

After all these years of living in solitude with nothing but the local wild life as companions, it was…strange, to have someone else around; even after a few months.

Especially considering who her...'_guest_'…was.

In all the time she'd been alive, she would've _**never **_thought that she'd meet an actual _**alien. **_Hell, she'd never even considered the possibility of aliens being real!

Now she had one living with her and still recovering from some rather nasty wounds. She hadn't really thought much about what she'd done; other than that the being was hurt and needed help.

That had been one hell of a surprise though…going out for her daily run to find what looked like some kind of robot lying on the forest floor, leaking a strange bluish silver substance from a rather _big _hole on its side.

Her instincts had kicked in immediately, her body falling into a defensive, ready stance; her bow and arrow notched just in case it was some kind of war machine gone rogue or something (She mentally snorted at that; she'd seen too much TV as a child).

Once it awoke and started talking, though, she knew that it was no ordinary robot and that it was an actual _**living **_being that was hurt and needed assistance.

The being had been suspicious and outright hostile towards her attempts at helping. But that seemed to change after that mountain lion tried to make scrap metal out of him.

It seemed that he'd been impressed by her (she still felt flustered and could even feel a light blush form at the memory of feeling those glowing red eyes studying her so…_intensely_) and finally allowed himself to be helped.

Once she'd brought him back to her small cave dwelling, she began to truly assess his damage; and as soon as she'd seen the extent of the damage (almost his whole back was wide open and sparking intermittently), she'd had a slight moment of doubt and worry.

She had _not _just fought and killed a mountain lion and dragged this being's sorry, _heavy _carcass back to her home just so that he would _**die **_on her _bed_!

Having let her 'training' take over again, she immediately began cleaning the wound. She might not be a mechanic or an engineer, but she knew enough first aids to know that a dirty wound would never heal properly; regardless if he was human or otherwise.

It seemed to have done the trick; as when she began to clean his wound, he immediately relaxed (though, that could've been because of his loss of…blood? Oil? Whatever.) and had even _thanked _her; something she wasn't really expecting from someone with his attitude.

Then, he fell right to sleep.

He slept heavily for three days, not once stirring. She had to admit, if only to herself, that she'd been very worried, close to panicking, even. Didn't he need to eat or drink? Or something?

Since she'd had no idea about what her 'guest' was or what he needed, all she could do was wait and see if he would wake up. The only reason she hadn't thought he was dead was because she could still hear a faint, low hum coming from somewhere inside his chest; possibly what passed as his heart or energy source or something.

His awakening had been interesting though…

It wasn't like a woozy, just-woke-up-from-a-three-day-coma kind of thing.

It was more like one minute he was dead to the world, the next he snapped awake and tried to jump up to his…feet?...only to be painfully reminded he was still badly injured and fell right back onto the furs. Growling and cursing the whole way; and for several minutes afterwards.

She'd learned a few new…colorful words, that day. The thought still brought a smirk to her lips.

Who knew there were so many different combos for so few curse words?

_**-Flashback-**_

The sudden movement and growls from the…alien, had Ivy jumping to her own feet, the blade she had nearby already in her grasp and ready in case her 'guest' wasn't as 'friendly' as he'd appeared at first.

But, no sooner was he almost on his knees, he was falling back onto his front and cursing and snarling rather colorfully in what she was sure were a few alien languages. Noticing that he wasn't going anywhere and wasn't going to be a threat any time soon; she relaxed from her stance and sat back down to wait out his rant.

She couldn't help but smirk in amusement at some of his…creative uses of curse words.

"Frag it all to the Smelter's **Pit!** Grraaah! Primus-damned-**FRAG!** Where am I? Where-?" He demanded as he looked around as far as he could from his prone position. When his eyes fell on her, the ire in his eyes was then replaced by recognition, and then they narrowed into a weary scowl.

"_You._ So, you _didn't _offline me in my recharge. And you seem to have done a decent enough job tending to my wound, as well, if what my systems are telling me is correct. For a human, that is…" He sneered in a derisive tone, but she didn't pay it mind, she was pretty certain, from his prideful and arrogant attitude, that it was his way of saying 'Thank you'. "Now, where are we? Answer me, human."

The "human" remark and his commanding tone made her raise an eyebrow and cross her arms across her chest, her stance all but screaming _"Are you serious?" _

Not even moving from her sitting position near her small fire, she motioned to the rock walls around her and to the mouth of the cave, giving him a sarcastic look that said, _"Where do you __**think?**__"_

Apparently, he didn't appreciate her sarcasm as he growled angrily and scowled at her. "Do **not **mock me, _human._ If not for the sorry state that I am currently in, you would be _begging _for mercy at this very instant!"

Again, her eyebrow twitched up skeptically. _"Oh really?"_

He growled dangerously again, and then went silent, turning his head away from her and stared at the wall for what seemed like hours.

Turning her own attention back to honing her knives and arrow heads (hmm, she'll need to get some new ones soon), she couldn't help the small smug smirk that tugged at her lips. She could be a sarcastic, arrogant asshole too…

"So…do you have a designation, human? Or shall I continue to call you such?"

The sardonic toned question caught her by surprise. She wasn't really expecting him to talk to her again. Much less ask for her _name. _

When she turned back to face him, her breath hitched when she noticed how _intensely_ those red eyes were scrutinizing her, as though they were trying to look into her _soul. _She wasn't really sure how she felt about that…

"Well? Are you going to answer or not, human? I must admit, I'm surprised you've been as silent as you have; I would've thought you'd be _bursting _with questions for me." Then he smirked sardonically.

"Or is it normal for you to find strange beings in this forest and to bring them back to your home?"

She glared balefully at his comment, but didn't answer him. She couldn't.

The thought brought a grimace as her hand unconsciously went up to her scarred and damaged throat.

It's not that she didn't _want _to speak, she simply couldn't; not for nearly 10 years.

The alien (she didn't know what else to call him) must have noticed, because his next words shocked the crap out of her, especially his almost…gentle…tone.

"It's not that you will not answer; it's that you can_**not**_, isn't it?"

She hesitantly looked up at him, not really wanting to see the pity in his eyes; derision, she could handle, but _never _pity. She'd had enough of people looking at her pityingly and thinking her disfigured or disabled…

But, shockingly, what she found was neither. He just looked at her with his normal intensity and just a little bit of curiosity; as though he was trying to figure out something else about her. Again, she wasn't sure what to make of that. But nothing shocked her more than his next words.

"I…apologize for my…rough behavior." He seemed to be struggling with the words; it was obvious he hadn't apologized to too many, if any, people before. "Whether I like it or not; you saved my life and I am bound by my warrior's honor to repay you. Until then, I am in your debt."

Even if she could speak; she was pretty sure that she would've been pretty much speechless; but as it was, she merely stared at him in surprised incredulity.

Then, she merely got up from where she'd been sitting and made her way to the injured being. It wasn't his fault; he didn't know.

She could feel his eyes following her every move up to when she sat next to him, her own eyes meeting his for a few moments while she tried to figure out a way to communicate with him.

Sure, he could speak and understand English, but did he know sign language or how to read?

'_Only one way to find out…'_

Taking a deep breath, she signed, _"Can you understand me?"_

She got her answer in his confused stare and even more confused sounding, "_What _are you doing?"

Sighing in exasperation, she waved her hand dismissively and got up once more, this time heading for one of her rucksacks; and pulled out a notepad and a pen.

Sitting down next him, again, she wrote in neat script _"__Can you read this?__"_

This time, there was a flash of understanding, "Yes, I can read your scripture."

She didn't hide her relieved exhalation; at least she'd be able to communicate with him _somehow._

Nodding her head in satisfaction, she went back to the pad. She only wrote one word, even in writing, she always preferred few words to express herself.

"_Ivy.__"_ She used the pen to point at herself and gave a tiny wry grin.

He looked slightly puzzled until he worked out her gesture, "Ivy. My name is Dinobot, an honor to meet you." He bowed his head in greeting as well as he could from his prone position.

'_Dinobot. Hmm, interesting name.' _

She bowed her head back, and wrote _"__How are you feeling?__"_

"Like scrap metal."

She smirked dryly at his grumble, _"__At least you're alive.__"_

"Hrmph, true." His eyes were suddenly going over her, scrutinizing and intense; almost making her want to squirm, but she held the urge. "What of you? Were you injured?"

Both her eyebrows rose at that; she wasn't expecting him to be worried about _her _health; though it seemed not everything was as it first appeared with him.

Shaking her surprise off, she wrote down while giving a nonchalant shrug, _"__No, I'm fine. Just a few scratches.__"_

"Hmm, good. Now, I'm sure you have questions…" And now _he _was the one that seemed uncomfortable.

To save him from it she waved her hand dismissively again, and wrote _"__It can wait. Are you hungry?__" _Suddenly feeling doubtful, she quickly added, _"__**Can**__ you eat?__"_

He scoffed derisively, "Of course I can eat; don't all living creatures? And yes, I can ingest your foods, but I'm not sure if my tanks can handle anything at the moment; at least until the wound in my abdomen heals more."

She nodded in acceptance to his answer, but didn't know what else to say, it wasn't like she had stories she was eager to share with him; and he the same.

Luckily, she was saved from the awkward silence by Dinobot's apparent curiosity, "What were those gestures you were doing? Before you used that writing pad…"

"_Sign language. People who can't speak use it to communicate with others."_

"Ah, I see." A pause. "Would you teach me?"

Looking into his eyes, she saw he was dead serious.

"_Why?__"_

His expression once more became sneering, "Because you have no other way of communicating, human. And I highly doubt you'll be walking around with that pad for the unforeseeable future that I'll be around."

'_Again with the 'human' bit."_

Her own expression turned dry and gave him a mocking grin, _"__Very funny.__"_

He gave her a sarcastic smirk, but sobered again, "I am serious. It would become an advantage as well, should those that attacked me come looking, and they _will _come looking; to be able to communicate with you in a manner they will surely be unable to understand."

That caught her attention, _"__Attacked you? Who?__"_

"It is…a long story." One he didn't seem too keen on sharing, but knew was necessary considering she would probably become involved in it eventually.

She gave him a dry smirk, _"__Start. It's not like I have anywhere else to be.__"_

_**- End Flashback-**_

It _had _been a long story, and by the end of it, she felt a deep sense of camaraderie with the alien warrior, specifically because of the betrayal he suffered. And, as it always did when she thought of it, her hand went up to her scarred throat; her eternal reminder of the betrayal _she _suffered.

But it seemed her peaceful, reminiscing moment was at its end. As no more than a few yards into the forest, she could hear a pair of loud voices that seemed to be arguing and complaining about something.

"Would you stop complaining already? Lord Megatron said to find Dinobot and bring his offlined body back or **not **come back at all!"

"I don't **care **about what that overgrown lizard said; I'm so fraggin' _tired_; I feel like my wings are 'bout to fall off!"

The remark was followed by a loud "CLANG!" of metal on metal and a pained yelp, immediately followed by _more _bickering.

Of course, as soon as she heard Dinobot's name mentioned she entered 'hunter mode', and quickly and stealthily made her way to voices' origin.

Using an old oak tree as cover; she spied on what appeared to be a giant scorpion and a bright red pterodactyl.

Well, if she hadn't already known about Dinobot, these guys might've just given her a heart attack.

And it seemed that he'd been right about his former 'comrades' coming after him to make sure he was dead, and if not, to finish the job.

Narrowing her eyes; she brought up her bow, an arrow already notched and ready (evidence of her many years of using the weapon) and took careful aim of the smaller of the two: the red whining dino.

But, the actions had been done purely on instinct; and once her rational mind came back, it made her aware of the big mistake she had been about to commit.

Back when she'd had Dinobot at her 'mercy', he'd been gravely injured and absolutely vulnerable; these two, on the other hand, were completely healthy, not to mention, from what she remembered Dinotbot telling her; the scorpion was the one who'd injured him so severely. So, perhaps attacking them was more of a suicidal idea than anything.

Lowering her bow and keeping her eyes on the arguing pair; she started to slowly and carefully make her way back to her cave. She had to warn Dinobot. Now.

Making sure was far enough away that she wouldn't gain any attention; Ivy sprinted all the way back to her cave. She kept looking over her shoulder the entire time, just in case.

Arriving at the cave in half the time it would've taken had she walked; she cringed slightly in guilt when she saw Dinobot, in Raptor form, curled up on his pile of furs, snoring lightly.

He'd been doing that a lot, and it had at first worried her, but he'd explained his self-repair system worked best when he was in beast form and that it took a lot out of him. The last time she'd awoken him from his 'nap', she'd almost lost a finger. Apparently, the grouchy dino did **not **like being woken from his 'naps'.

'_Well, he'll just have to deal with it this time around…' _She thought dryly, trying to keep the guilt at bay and stepped right up to him; reaching down to shake him awake, all the while making sure to keep her hands away from his teeth.

As expected, he gave a deep snarl of protest, but this time he gave her a hard swat with his tail. It got her right between her shoulders and she almost ended up face-planting on the cave floor.

Then…the bastard had the _audacity _to laugh at her.

Lifting herself from the floor she gave him a dark glare before flipping him off.

He only laughed harder. She'd thought she'd have to explain the gesture, but it looked like he already knew (whether it was because he'd 'researched' it or his species used it too, she had no idea).

"Well," there was still a hint of mirth in his voice even though he'd managed to stop laughing, "Is there something you wanted, human? I know you didn't simply wake me up to tell me to 'frag off'. And I thought you wouldn't be back for another few hours."

Blinking, she quickly remembered the reason why she'd run through a forest and decided, against her better judgment, to awaken the grouchy dinosaur.

Her face turning serious, she signed, _"__Trouble__"_

Dinobot's smirk slid right off, he didn't need her to explain, he knew. His habitual scowl returning and he was up on his feet before she could blink, "How many?"

Ivy didn't even blink at being face to face with a 7' tall dinosaur. She lifted two of her fingers and signed, _"__Scorpion. Red dinosaur.__"_

She'd never really bothered to learn dinosaur names in sign language; now it looked like she'd better start.

"Scorponok and Terrorsaur." He snarled venomously, "So, they did come looking for me; probably under orders from that fool Megatron. As much as I wish to…return the favor to that sniveling underling; I am still not at full strength and you are no match for two fully functional Predacons."

Ivy wanted to feel insulted, but knew he spoke the truth, so, she merely nodded in assent and went over to her rucksacks. She always kept one or two ready, in case of a speedy retreat; like now.

Taking them and quickly slinging her sword from the wall to her back beside her bow and arrows (everything else was replaceable); she made her way to the back of the cave, ignoring the confused looking raptor.

Reaching the large boulder that seemingly rested innocently at the back of cave, she began trying to roll the boulder out of the way. Key word being 'trying'. When the hell had the rock gotten so _heavy?_

She needed to start her upper-body strengthening training again.

"_What _are you _doing,_ femme? We have no time for games!"

Glaring at him from her position against the stubborn boulder, she signed, _"__Emergency exit. Tunnel__"_

Eyes widening in understanding, Dinobot quickly made his way over to her and, none too gently, pushed her aside and snarled in annoyance, "Why didn't you say so in the first place, you stubborn female? Now, stay back."

Digging his sharp claws into the rock, he soon had it rolling to the side (though, it was obvious he was exerting himself; still not being at full strength and all); turning to smirk smugly at the scowling female.

Stepping away from the rock and to the side of the now exposed tunnel; he gave her a mock bow and said in a condescending tone, "Ladies first."

Scowl deepening, Ivy merely grabbed her backpacks and made her way into the tunnel, refusing to look back and see if the smarmy dino was following after her.

Hearing the boulder being rolled back into place, she hastened her steps so she could get out of the small, dark tunnel faster as she could feel herself starting to get agitated.

Seeing the tunnel's exit, she had to fight back the sigh of irrational relief that wanted to escape her.

The last thing she needed was for the prideful warrior to have something to taunt her with.

"Well, now what, femme? Do you have another cave where we can go?"

Finally turning around to look at him, she shook her head and motioned with her left hand at what appeared to be a large pile bushes and fallen tree limbs and brush. In fact, it was just camouflage for a faded green, old jeep. Stepping over a fallen trunk, she began pulling the brush and other bits off it.

"Hmm, you really _are _a resourceful femme, aren't you?" She could hear the subtle _impressed_ hint in his usual sneering tone.

Now it was _her _turn to grin smugly at him. He just scoffed.

Yes, they had a vehicle, but now what? Where would they go? It was obvious they couldn't stay in the forest, Megatron wouldn't stop until Dinobot was found.

It seemed that the only certain thing at the moment was that they had to get out of this area, fast.

Perhaps they could head south…

* * *

><p><em>Silver Lake Preserve…<em>

Ash sighed in undisguised frustration. She'd been out here for three days and she had seen neither hide nor hair of any of the missing animals.

She thought she'd caught a break when she found an elderly couple living in the preserve. She asked them if they'd seen or heard anything…unusual, lately.

They'd looked at her funny for a moment, before they asked if she was looking for Bigfoot or something.

Oh God, how she'd wanted to bang her head against the door frame or something.

When she went on to explain that she'd heard about the 'wild animals' they'd found in the preserve a few months ago and that she was curious about whether they might still be around or not, the old man piped up with a sudden moment of memory.

"I remember hearing some strange noises coming from the lake's shore, but when I went to check, there was nothing there!"

"George, I told you, you must've heard a bear or a raccoon coming out of hibernation or something. And you, young lady, should _not_ be going around _alone_ in these woods looking for _wild animals!_ Why, it's absolutely absurd! Back in my day…"

And that's when she'd thanked both seniors and beat a hasty retreat. She did not need, nor want, a history lesson at the moment. She had a lead to follow!

That had been two days ago, and she was camped at a few hours hike to the lake. Still, she hadn't seen or heard anything strange at all during those two days of almost continuous hiking. She needed a breather. She'd go to the lake tomorrow bright and early.

So, when she finished putting up her tent, she decided it was time to do a little sketching. No use in letting all this beautiful nature go to waste, especially since it was well into spring and all the snow had melted and the green, lush trees and brightly colored flowers were just _begging _to be put down onto paper and canvas.

Taking her sketch pad and drawing coals, she climbed the sturdiest and decidedly tallest tree around (which was some 30-feet off the ground) and lay back against its trunk; enjoying the view for a few minutes before whipping out her materials and started working.

Later, she'd smack herself repeatedly for having the _brilliant _idea of picking such a _frickin' tall _tree and for not paying more attention to her surroundings.

Then; maybe she would've heard the faint buzzing noise, not 30 minutes later, that could be heard getting closer and louder…

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN: _**_Just so you guys know, I'm starting an internship and won't have a lot of time free, so I might not update this for a while, k? __Review, please~! XD_


	8. Found You

_**Disclaimer: **__Transformers? Not mine. Beast Wars? Not mine. Do I have to keep saying it? *sighs* Primus, it's like rubbing salt in a wound; painful. *sniffles*_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7: Found You<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Axalon, Silver Lake Preserve, New York…<em>

It had been a _long _three weeks in the _Axalon _for Cheetor. As if it wasn't bad enough that he couldn't get a certain human femme out of his processors; Optimus had gone and _noticed _his change of mood.

He was grateful to the Big Bot for trying to help him, really, he was. But he doubted he had a way to erase the past few months from his processor.

Not that he wanted the memories gone! Pit, no! They were some of the best he had during his young existence. He just wished it didn't hurt so much…

Then one day, a couple of weeks ago, Optimus finally cornered him and demanded that he tell him what was wrong; that even Rattrap and Rhinox had noticed his sudden sullenness and that "enough is enough!"

Cheetor had winced at the frustrated and worried statement, and tried to stammer out an excuse, but couldn't come up with anything believable. Optimus apparently noticed his distress and placed a soothing hand on his shoulder; apologizing for having raised his voice and gotten mad; that he was just really worried about him.

He couldn't take it, Optimus was just being so understanding and he _hated _lying to the mech; so he told him everything. How he'd seen Giggles and accidentally tripped over himself, how she'd noticed he was more than just a regular cheetah, how she would come every day to see him, how she'd become such a dear friend to him…

How miserable he felt that he had left her without even saying a proper goodbye.

How much he _missed_ her!

Surprisingly, Optimus didn't reprimand him for letting their secret out, sort of, and instead gave him an understanding, yet slightly sad, smile.

And that's when he found out that Optimus had made his own human friend during their stay at the zoo. It was obvious, as the mech spoke about her, that he missed her terribly too.

He felt such a relief when he realized that he wasn't alone in his, well, to put it bluntly, moping; and managed to open up more to his friend and commander, feeling the heaviness in his spark lift, if only a little.

They spoke once or twice a week, playing a human game called chess that was pretty entertaining, trying to get their processors away from their absent friends.

Sometimes, they went on patrol around the forest, pretending that this was just another exploration mission, or looking for any signs of the Predacons. They hadn't seen or heard anything since the crash.

This time, though, Optimus wasn't around; he'd gone on patrol with Rhinox; and Cheetor just wanted to be alone and perhaps have a long run around the lake's shore.

In fact, he was just about at the ship's exit, when…

"And just where do ya think yer goin'?"

'_Oh, busted!'_

"Uh, nowhere! I mean, uh, just going for a run, that's all!"

Ah slag, could he sound any _guiltier_?

"Uh-huh. Oh, really?" Rattrap looked at him with a bored expression, "And ya just decided ta go without tellin' anyone?" He scoffed, "Sorry, but no dice, Kid. Especially after dat little 'field trip' o' yours last time."

He winced slightly at the jab; he did _not _need this right now. "Hey, it was an accident, ok? I already said I was sorry! And besides, you're not the boss of me! I can go out if I want to!"

"Not wit out a babysittah, yer not."

Cheetor was trying, really, _really_ trying not to growl. "I'm not a sparkling! I can take care of myself! I'm just going for a run around the lake, _that's it._ We've been on patrol around it before, and there were no humans anywhere nearby. And if there are, I'll just duck into the thicker parts of the forest or maybe even the lake."

Rattrap still stood, unimpressed by his words, in front of the exit, arms crossed in front of his chestplates.

It seems he'll have to pull out his 'big guns'…

Letting his expression and stance slump into one of defeat, Cheetor looked up pleadingly at the, decidedly, startled rat. So, he wasn't expecting this, perfect…

"Oh come on, RT, I'm going stir crazy in here!" he nearly whined pitifully, "I just wanna go for a run, I won't even leave comm. Range, I swear! Please?"

He clasped his servos in front of himself in a pleading gesture and let his optics cycle wider just enough…

It was pretty obvious the rat was trying not to fall for the kicked cyber-kitty look, but was failing almost miserably. As much as he tried to act like a sarcastic, selfish jerk; he just couldn't say no to younglings and sparklings. And though Cheetor was well into his young adult frame, he still acted too much like a youngling for him _not _to be affected.

Slapping his forehead, letting his servo drag slowly over his faceplates, he sighed resignedly and stepped out of the way, but not before giving the young mech a piercing glare.

"Ya check in _every_ mega-cycle, ya hear me! And if Primal finds out, I had _nothin' _ta do wit dis! I didn' even _know _you left, deal?"

"Yes, deal! Thank you, Rattrap! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" He raised a fist to the air and just barely kept himself from hugging the annoyed mech.

"Yeah, yeah, whatevah. Just go, 'fore I change mah processors!"

Cheetor mock saluted him with a cheeky grin, before _sprinting _down the exit hatch, changing to his beast mode and dashing into the forest.

"I'm gonna regret dis, I just know it." He just shook his head and went back to his repairs.

That kid was gonna be the end of him, he was sure of it.

* * *

><p>It was always an <em>amazing <em>feeling when he was free to let loose and be as fast as he wanted to be, that he _could _be. It made him remember his Academy days when everybot used to say he would make a great racer; he really wasn't a vain mech, but what mech _didn't_ like having their egos stroked from time to time?

Besides, he wasn't called the 'Golden Rocket' for nothing. A name he was proud to live up to whenever he could.

He was just making it to the other side of the lake when suddenly…

"_AAAAAHHHHHH!_"

"Woah!" He came a screeching halt, "What the spotted heck was _that_?"

His ears were immediately flicking around; trying to find the scream's direction, realizing it was from not that far within the forest on his current side of the lake.

He let his instincts take over before he thought about the consequences, and he was making his way through the forest; the only thoughts in his head were to reach the scream's source and helping whoever was in trouble.

What he found was the last thing, or well, person, that he expected to see.

* * *

><p><em>Ashley's campsite…<em>

'_Why does universe hate Waspinator?'_

This was all that Waspinator could think as he stared at the unconscious human femme that he'd 'accidentally' encountered.

Well, ok, not _entirely_ accidentally. Why, oh why did he have to let his curiosity take over?

He knew he wasn't even _supposed_ to be this far away from the _Nemesis; _he hadn't even flown in the _direction_ Dinobot was supposed to be.

What if he _had_ found him? What would he do? Get shot and blown up? Again? No, thank you.

But now…it seemed to just be one thing after another with him; if it wasn't being treated like slag by Megatron, it was being screamed at (It really _hurt _his audios, by the way!) by a female of the local species.

He just wanted to see what she was doing; he wasn't going to hurt her.

But before he could say so, the femme started retreating and ended up falling out of the tree; hitting every branch on the way (He'd winced in sympathy every time) and landing on the ground below, knocked completely out cold.

Well, now what? Should he call Megatron and ask if he should take the femme?

Waspinator shuddered at that; other than probably getting yelled at and called awful names, Megatron would probably tell him to _kill _the femme for having seen him, or take her as a prisoner for the tyrant, or even worse: be a 'test subject' for that crazy spider, Tarantulas. He shuddered again.

He may be a Predacon, but he was _not _some sparkless monster. The only reason he _was _a Predacon was because most Maximals saw him as stupid because of his vocal glitch. Though, it really wasn't any better with Megatron, but it was too late for that now.

It wasn't too late to help the femme, though; he didn't _have _to report his encounter...At least, not yet.

Nodding decisively to himself, Waspinator made to reach down and pick up the unconscious femme, and maybe take her to the closest human habitation…

And that's when the universe decided to prove its disdain of him. Again.

"Don't you _dare _touch her, you filthy Pred!"

His head quickly snapped up…only to find himself nose ridge to blaster muzzle with a very _angry _looking Maximal. Oh, slag…

"W-wait! Wazzpinator not hurt femme! Wazz aczzident!" He buzzed anxiously, his optics locked on the muzzle of the blaster that sounded like it was powering up.

The mech was slightly startled and thrown off balance, not expecting him to try and defend himself with _words _instead of a blaster_,_ but regained his anger pretty quick.

" 'Accident', yeah, right. Listen, _pal_, if you don't get away from her in five nanokliks, I'm gonna pump you full of plasma, starting now. Five…Four…"

Waspinator immediately jumped away from the fallen femme, transformed and flew away as fast as his wings could carry him, asking Primus for the crazy Maximal not to shoot him anyway and just _**why **_did the universe hate him so?

All he knew at the moment was that he would probably have to report to Megatron just why he was returning back to base so soon, empty handed, and that this would probably _not _be the last time he'd see the slagged off Maximal.

* * *

><p><em>Axalon…<em>

Optimus Primal prided himself on being ready for the unexpected. It's what he'd been trained for at the New Iacon Military Academy, and he'd graduated top of his class.

Always expect the unexpected, that's what each and every single one of his instructors and mentors had told him and his peers. He'd paid close attention to everything and kept it locked securely in his processor for future reference, and believed himself to be a capable commander.

But just how many unexpected things could happen in the space of a few _lunar cycles_?

First, it was the communiqué about Megatron and his crew having stolen a priceless relic from their past and that _their _ship was the only one in the near vicinity with capabilities to chase down the rogue Preds.

Then, they end up crashing on an unknown planet; their ship slagged nearly beyond repair, virtually stuck with no way out _with _said Predacons, whom they currently have no idea as to their current location or status.

After _that, _not even a few _cycles_ on said planet, they were captured by the locals and placed in one of their zoos for almost four lunar cycles.

And now…now, Optimus Primal, commander of the Maximal exploration vessel _Axalon_, honor graduate and successor to the legendary Optimus Prime's unlimited well of patience, was just about ready to smack his forehelm on a wall.

Hard.

Repeatedly.

Because the last thing he expected (but, really, he should have _known _better) was to come back from patrol to a missing Cheetor (he was going to have a _serious chat _with that youngling) and an in denial Rattrap (Primus help him, he was going to _throttle_ the little glitch if he kept acting like one).

"Rattrap, stop trying to talk your way out of this and tell me where Cheetor is!"

"I said I don't know! Geez, why don'tcha get yer audios checked, ya overgrown banana muncher!"

Optimus swore he felt his right optic twitch. With a barely restrained growl, he enunciated carefully, "Rattrap, if you don't tell me where Cheetor went _right now_; you're going to spend the _night_, and maybe even tomorrow, in the brig. Strung up by your tail."

The sarcastic mech's optics widened momentarily, before narrowing defiantly, "Ya wouldn' dare…"

The commander met his optics with his own; a narrowed, no nonsense look on his face.

"Try me."

Rattrap's scowl deepened, for a moment, before it fell into a resigned grimace, "Ok, ok! No need ta get yer circuits in a twist…The kid said he was gettin' antsy and dat he wanted to go out fer a run 'round da lake. I told him ta check in every mega-cycle, and he's only been gone half o' one, so he's still due."

"Why didn't you just say so in the first place, Rattrap?" The annoyance in his voice was to cover up his relief; at least Rattrap made sure he knew where Cheetor was and kept contact with him.

"Like I've been sayin', I ain't his sittah, I shouldn' be blamed whenevah he decides to take a leisurely stroll. 'Sides, he's a grown mech, more or less," he muttered the last part under his breath, "we can't keep babyin' him, or he'll nevah be able ta rely on himself."

Optimus' optics widened at that statement. That…actually made sense. Huh. Maybe the rat _wasn't _as much of an aft as he'd led others believe.

Taking a deep breath, he calmly replied, "You're right, Rattrap. Cheetor _is _a grown mech and he needs to exercise his individuality and freedom of choice. Just…so long as he doesn't get himself into trouble."

"Ahh, give the kid a break, Cap'n Kong. I'm pretty sure he learned his lesson from da last time, he'll be fi—"

He was interrupted by the sound of the ship's entrance hatch opening and Cheetor's anxious and distressed call.

"Rattrap! I need help, quick!"

"…I just had ta open my big mouth, didn' I?"

Optimus quickly looked away and hid his smirk behind his blast mask.

* * *

><p>A few hours later found the ship's crew in the Medbay, gathered around the berth where the injured femme Cheetor had brought in was resting peacefully, completely oblivious to her surroundings.<p>

"Well…now what?" Was Rattrap's brilliant way of ending the awkward silence.

Giving him no more than an annoyed glance, Optimus turned to Rhinox, "What's her status, Rhinox? Was she hurt badly?"

He gave a quick worried glance at Cheetor, who was staring intently at the human; it was obvious, even though the chances had been highly implausible, that _this _was the human femme Cheetor had befriended during their time in captivity.

"Nothing too serious; a few bumps and scrapes, she'll definitely be sore come tomorrow, but I've managed to clean and cover up what few cuts she has, not to mention she has a twisted ankle, which I've also bandaged. The only thing that concerns me is her right arm…"

"Why? What's wrong with it? Did that Pred do something to it?" If that bug did _anything _to his Giggles…

"No, I don't think the Predacon had anything to do with it." Rhinox replied calmly, turning to a section of the wall were monitors were showing different readings from the femme.

He pointed to what appeared to be an x-ray of her internal structure, "I downloaded some human medical information; these are called 'bones', they are what serve as the humans' support struts. They're made of a compound of calcium and other minerals, not as sturdy as metal and can break relatively, to us, easily. What I've discovered here," He pointed to her right arm, where a small black line went horizontally across her bone, "is called a 'hairline fracture', not entirely broken, but if not cared for immediately, might leave her with limited use of her arm. And, I believe this was caused by a high altitude fall, maybe 40 or 50 feet, not an injury caused by a violent attack."

"Can you fix it?" This time it was Optimus, his concern wasn't as deep as Cheetor's, but he still did not want the poor femme to lose proper functioning of her right servo.

Giving his friend a dry look, he replied, "Like I said, their inner structure is not the same as ours; I can't 'fix' her like I could one of us or place her in the CR chamber, all I could do was set it in a gel-cast and make sure she does not move it or overuse it for at least a quartex or so. And the same goes for her ankle, she's not to place any weight on it for at least half of that time. " He paused, and added thoughtfully, "Of course…I could give her a small dose of our healing nanites…"

"Nanites? On a human; a full organic? Would they even work? And wouldn't there be side effects?"

A heavy sigh, "I do not know. That is why I would prefer if she were allowed to heal normally as a human would. She may stay here for as long as she needs…provided, of course, she doesn't panic when she awakens."

"Yes, well, something tells me we won't have to worry about that." Optimus replied secretively, a small smile tugging at his lip plates, sending a quick glance to Cheetor; the young bot completely oblivious to their conversation, still staring at the young femme.

It was pretty obvious he wanted to go over to her, but didn't know if it was ok.

Rhinox seemed to realize that there was something else going on and gave Optimus a 'we'll talk about this later' look.

"Well, if you're sure…"

"I am, but…I think it would be best if one of us stayed with her, I don't want her waking up alone in what will surely be an unknown and scary place to her."

"I'll stay!" It was the first thing Cheetor had said for a while, and he quickly slapped his servo over his mouth, feeling absolutely mortified that he'd sounded so desperate and anxious.

"Uh, I mean, I'm pretty much the closest in size to her, uh, I guess, so, I might not be as scary to her as a gorilla or a rhino. No offense, big guys!"

Both older mechs' shared an amused glance before soothing the young bot, "It's alright, Cheetor, you can take the first watch. And, Rattrap can—where's Rattrap?"

That's when they all noticed that the rat was gone, had probably been gone for a while now. They should've known; it had been _way _too quiet for the usually snarky rodent to have been around.

"I should've known." Shaking his head, he turned back to the young mech, "Alright, Cheetor, looks like you'll be watching the femme for the rest of the night. Should she wake up or if something happens during the night, you are to call either myself or Rhinox, immediately. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Though he sounded a little distracted, his optics back on the young female.

"Good. Come along, Rhinox, there's a few things I need to speak to you about." Optimus stopped at the door, turning and smiling encouragingly at the youngling.

"Goodnight, Cheetor. We'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah, goodnight." Cheetor replied, still distractedly.

He didn't notice Optimus' widening smile or the closing of the door. All he could see was his friend, his Giggles, sleeping peacefully with a tiny smile on her face, not five feet away from him.

He couldn't believe it. She was _here,_ and it wasn't a _dream. _He felt a smile tug at his lip plates and he barely restrained himself from rushing over to her side.

Instead, he walked slowly, hesitantly, over to her, still wary that it really _might _be a dream and if he got to close, she might disappear and he'll wake up in his own room, alone.

Reaching her right side, he suddenly came to a startling realization. She was right _there _and this time…

This time, there was _no glass _keeping him from touching her.

Feeling his spark flutter happily at this revelation, he mindlessly reached out and softly, carefully, as though she were made of silica glass, brushed a stray strand of hair from her forehead; his fingers then running down her temple and gently over her soft cheek. His spark felt like it was about to burst, it was thrumming so fast!

And it almost did, when Giggles suddenly shifted, murmuring something under her breath, sighing, leaning her head into his touch, and the smile on her face grew just that little bit more.

"I can't believe you're really here. I never thought I'd see you again." He whispered to her, knowing she couldn't hear him, but needing to say the words anyway, "But never again; I promise you, I'll never leave you again. Never."

And with one last caress over her cheek, he pulled a chair up to the berth side and reverted back to beast mode and took up a comfortable position on it, his paws lying next to her on the berth, his head lying on them. With one last look at the smile on her face, he started to drift off into his own content recharge. The first in many, many nights.

* * *

><p>It was several hours later, sometime around midnight, that Ashley began stirring from her deep sleep. At first, the only thing she noted was the <em>pain<em>.

God, it felt like she'd been run over by a semi!

'_Ugh, what the heck happened? Where am I?'_

As her thoughts started to clear slightly from the fog of sleep, her memories started to come back. She'd been out on her yearly spring break camping trip, she'd been looking for Freckles, she'd climbed up a tree (_'Geez, what the hell was I thinking?'_), she'd been drawing, she'd seen a giant wasp—

Wait. _What?_

She hissed in pain when she tried to sit up from the surprise as everything came rushing back.

God, her right arm; hell, her whole _body,_ hurt like a sonnuvagun! But she shook it off and went back to her original thoughts.

Just where the hell did a _giant wasp _come from?

She was about to try and lift herself up, again, when she caught something at the corner of her eye, she turned her head to look…

And came to a dead stop, her eyes widening in disbelief. No, it couldn't be…

Not a few inches from her face was the sleeping visage of a dark brown-spotted, golden furred _cheetah. _But, it couldn't…it wasn't possible…

"Freckles?" She breathed out silently, the wonder and awe in her voice mimicking the same feelings she'd had the first time she'd seen him.

How was it even possible? Had she hit her head harder than she thought when she fell from the tree?

No, it wasn't an illusion or a dream, the pain and soreness she felt were too real for that. Then, how…?

Shaking her head and deciding not to question her luck, at the moment, she quickly turned all of her focus to the sleeping feline, feeling her lips lift in a growing smile.

She'd found him. She'd _found _him!

Oh, the joy she felt couldn't be compared to anything she'd ever felt in her entire life. Just when she'd started to lose hope…

Now, here she was, lying in a bed in some strange looking room, with the object of her search lying peacefully next to her; like some reward given to her to make up for all the sadness and despair she'd felt over the last few weeks.

Unable to resist herself any longer, she reached out with her left hand (now that she realized her right was in some sort of cast) and softly ran her fingers through the fur on his head, scratching lightly behind one of the soft, furry ears. She giggled softly when it twitched and a soft purr rumbled from his chest.

Oh God, he was so cute!

Taking her hand back, reluctantly, she laid back on the bed, her face still turned to him, and a big smile on her face.

What would it be like? To finally be able to be around Freckles, face-to-face? No glass wall, no curious people, no interruptions.

The thought was enough to make her almost giddy with excitement, and that meant she wasn't getting anymore sleep any time soon. But she was loath to wake the sleeping cat, she liked watching him sleep and hearing the soft purring snores he made, it was so soothing…

So, she made herself comfortably on the bed and decided to wait and see if the feline would awaken soon.

She didn't have to wait long, when just a few minutes later, she saw the slumbering cheetah start to twitch and stir out of his restful state.

Ashley had a slight moment of panic when she realized that she was alone in a strange room with a potentially dangerous animal; regardless of her time with him in the zoo. But, something inside her just as quickly soothed that fear and replaced it with a sort of anxious anticipation.

Her breath caught in her throat, as those amazing green eyes opened and focused on her.

It was a moment of tense silence as the feline's eyes widened, almost comically, when he realized she was awake; she actually had to resist the urge to giggle at his face.

Deciding to break the silence, she whispered softly, warmly, "Hey, there. Long time no see, Freckles." A warm, serene smile pulling at her lips as she said the words.

That seemed to snap him out of his daze, and he, tentatively, returned her smile with that same shy, feline like smile he'd given her that first day they'd 'met'.

"Hey yourself, Giggles."

She blinked. Then blinked again, twice. Well, that wasn't _exactly _what she was expecting…

"You can talk." She was pretty impressed with how calm her voice came out, only the slightest touch of awe and breathlessness present in it.

"Yeah, I can, heh," he shifted nervously, "I…guess I owe you an explanation, huh?"

"I guess." She gave him a teasing grin, "And perhaps you can start with who and what you are, since it's obvious you're _not _a regular cheetah. Though, _that _was pretty obvious from the start."

She giggled softly at the embarrassment that formed on his face. It was surprising how at ease she was, even in the face of a situation such as _this._

The talking feline seemed to have similar thoughts, if the surprise on his face was anything to go by. It was soon replaced by the same ease he used to show when they were hanging out at the zoo.

He still seemed a bit shy, though.

"Yeah, well, I guess the first thing you should know is my name. I'm Cheetor. Nice to meet ya." He gave her small grin, "And you're right; I'm not a regular cheetah. Actually, I'm not even from your planet."

"Wait, say _what_? Not from my _planet_…?"

"Yeah, it's…a pretty long story."

"Welp, I'm all ears! It's not like I'm going anywhere!" She replied cheerily, grinning cheekily and motioning to her current state.

Caught a little off guard, Cheetor started to laugh brightly, all traces of shyness and doubt seemingly gone, "Ok, sure! But, first you gotta tell me something…" There was a teasing edge to his words.

"Hmm? What is it?" She looked at him curiously.

A snicker. "Your name. You forgot to tell me your name."

'_Though it's not like I wouldn't mind keep calling you Giggles…'_

"Oh! I'm sorry! I guess I let my enthusiasm get the best o' me." She blushed slightly at her blunder; she then smiled shyly and held out her hand, "I'm Ashley, Ashley Hunter; but you can call me Ash. Nice to meet you too, Cheetor~"

Looking at her hand curiously and back at her, she belatedly realized that he probably didn't understand the gesture.

"Oh, um, you're supposed to shake hands with someone you've just met, it's a kind of greeting."

"Oh! Why didn't ya say so? Guess I'm gonna need my servos for that, then."

"Huh?"

She was completely baffled when Cheetor merely grinned at her in a smug and playful sort of way, then proceeded to leap out of his chair and a few feet away from her bed. What happened next was just about the coolest, most shocking thing she'd ever seen.

"Cheetor, Maximize!"

She felt her jaw hit the floor; like, seriously, she probably looked like a fish right now.

But how _else _was she supposed to react when the feline in front of her suddenly changed, _transformed_, into some kind of mix between a cheetah and a robot! A really cute looking one, too…

Woah, wait. _What?_

'_Where the heck did __**that **__come from?'_

She was so engrossed in her embarrassing thoughts that she failed to notice that Cheetor, now a blue and gold colored, 6 foot something robot, had made his way in front of her, the grin he'd been sporting a lot more noticeable now. Her eyes widened in awe, and a little appreciation, as she took him in more detail. He was amazing!

"I know I'm a pretty awesome sight, but you should really close your mouth before a fly gets in."

His teasing words immediately snapped her out of her stupor and she closed her mouth with an almost audible 'clack', her cheeks blushing profusely, her eyes turning away slightly.

It was when she felt a strong, yet gentle, hand close around hers that she finally looked back; only just realizing that she'd left her hand extended towards him. But, for some reason, he now had a look of worry and…fear? Why would he be afraid…?

"Giggles…Ash…I hope that…this doesn't make things…awkward, between us." He said hesitantly, his worry evident even in his voice, "I…I really had fun…those months that you came to visit me. You're the first friend,_ real_ friend, I've had in…a very long time and…I hope…that we can keep being friends…"

She stared at him for the longest time, before a warm, reassuring smile slid across her face; her hand tightening around his.

"I'd like that, Freckles. I'd like that a lot."

His answering smile made a lovely warm feeling settle deeply in her chest and in the pit of her stomach, convincing her that she'd made the right choice in going after her cheetah.

And Cheetor was definitely hers.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN: _**_D'aaawwww~! XD Gotta love fluff~ Review, please~! Again, would like to remind that I'm currently in a work/study internship and won't be updating this too regularly. Sorry~ ^_^;;_


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